mun 2 will kick off the first of five NFL games next Sunday, a package that will culminate with coverage of Super Bowl XLIX.
NBCUniversal’s Hispanic cable network mun2, will broadcast the Hispanic Heritage Game in Arlington, Texas on Sept. 28, with the New Orleans Saints visiting the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. The network will announce its on-air talent team later this week.
The primetime presentation is part of a one-year deal for “La NFL en mun2” that will also see the 40 million-subscriber service air the Thanksgiving night game, featuring an NFC Championship Game rematch between the Seattle Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers. Mirroring NBC’s playoff schedule, mun2 will also televise a Wild Card contest, a Divisional Playoff game and Super Bowl XLIX from Glendale, Ariz.
The network will use the NFL championship as a forum to announce its new name and reveal elements of its upgraded programming slate.
“This is a tremendous opportunity to televise a number of high-profile events, capped by the Super Bowl, in partnership with the NBC Sports Group,” said mun2 president Ruben Mendiola. “We are very proud to bring these games to our audience in a culturally relevant way.”
mun2’s coverage marks the second time key NFL regular-season and playoff matchups will air on a Spanish-language cable network, as Fox Deportes was in the game last season with a package that culminated with coverage of Seattle's destruction of Denver in Super Bowl XLVIII.
The addition of the NFL games continues mun2's evolution to a lineup that features more sports. Mendiola believes the contests will not only generate strong appeal among mun2 viewers who are already pro pigskin fans, but they will open new audience doors.
“Many fans have been listening to the games on the radio, or not watching at all. With culturally relevant telecasts, we believe they are going to tune into mun2 to watch the action,” he said.
He noted that with Arizona’s significant Latino population, the Super Bowl will provide “a perfect forum” for the network to announce its name change.
The network, he said, is also benefiting from added attention on Madison Avenue: “There is a lot of interest among advertisers who are looking to reach mun2’s traditional and expanded audience.”
“La NFL en mun2” joins mun2’s sports roster that also includes coverage of the top Mexican soccer circuit and the U.K.'s Barclays Premier League. Other top sports properties on deck: La NASCAR en mun2, the FIFA World Cup starting in 2015, and the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
