Having worked with NBC Sports on their Olympic coverage and recognizing the importance of what their theme music, composed by John Williams, had done for recall, Velazquez wanted to ensure Telemundo’s World Cup coverage would benefit from a similar emotional connection.

A lover of music, Eli recognized what a theme could do to strengthen storytelling and audience engagement. He also wanted to make a statement to the market that Telemundo’s coverage would be better than previous efforts in Spanish language and equal or better in quality to his competitor in the general market.

Many composers were reviewed for this task, a larger budget was created, and through his network at NBC Sports, their then creative director Mark Levy, introduced Velazquez to composer, Yoav Goren, an extremely talented musician who was with BMG at the time.

Velazquez was especially impressed with Goren’s ability to layer instruments from different cultures and appreciative that Goren welcomed his insights and specific feedback.

This video incorporates FIFA World Cup historical highlights and clips from Goren’s recording of the theme at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London.