ADRIAN MA, HOST:
Regardless of whether Spain or Argentina prevail in tomorrow's World Cup final, one of the biggest winners in this year's tournament is already clear. I'm talking about the broadcasters. Take Telemundo. The Spanish-language channel owned by NBCUniversal has attracted millions of viewers per game, even many who don't speak Spanish. And our next guest is one of Telemundo's breakout stars, Jozy Altidore. His on-field experience includes playing forward for the U.S. men's soccer team for over a decade, including in the World Cup. And in recent weeks, Altidore has been captivating audiences in Spanish as a soccer analyst and commentator for Telemundo.
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JOZY ALTIDORE: (Speaking Spanish).
MA: To tell us what it is like to go from being a player to a pundit (ph), Jozy Altidore joins us now. Thanks for taking the time.
ALTIDORE: Thanks for having me, guys.
MA: This being your first gig as a commentator and analyst for the World Cup, I mean, I imagine this is a high-pressure gig to begin with, but I'm curious whether you felt any additional pressure doing this in Spanish.
ALTIDORE: Yeah. I mean, for me, I was really intrigued, really, really intrigued at the opportunity. Yeah. Because I'm a big believer in just people that believe in you. And Telemundo, ever since I was a young player, really, really young player, they always had reached out to me, whether it's, you know, interviews, different opportunities. It always gave me the confidence to do it. And so when I had the opportunity now to do my first-ever broadcasting, you know, it was a no-brainer for me to sit and talk with Telemundo.
And for me to have the opportunity now to obviously get everything completed and to be able to be on the broadcast and participate, it was an amazing experience. I can't say it enough at how much of a different outlook it has given me both, you know, as a player, a fan, now as a broadcaster, and just as an overall somebody that's in the soccer ecosystem. It just gives you a completely different outlook.
MA: I understand that you grew up in Miami, speaking some Spanish, and you've also played in Spain and Mexico. I'm curious, like, how is sort of the conversational Spanish you grew up speaking different than having to do analysis in Spanish?
ALTIDORE: Definitely a little bit different. Obviously, you know, I grew up playing in south Florida, so, you know, Miami, Homestead, all these areas, Kendall, where it was heavy, heavy Spanish speaking. When you play in these environments at a young age, I mean, these are basically street environments in terms of the parents, the players, their upbringing, their backgrounds, what the game means to them. So from a young age, I felt like I was playing some very serious soccer but in and around always a Latino community. And I think all of that helped me kind of understand the different meanings and the different ways to speak Spanish and interact with the language.
MA: You have been widely praised for your coverage on Telemundo. Why do you think you've been getting this kind of response?
ALTIDORE: I think one of the reasons could be is like anybody that knows me knows that I love watching games in Spanish. I love the commentary, the coverage that was basically 24/7 on the game, the way they covered the game, the way they talk about, you know, the different matchups. I always was fascinated for it because it just always provided more color, more information to me as a viewer. And I always just enjoyed it so much because of - it was almost theater, even the pregame shows, you know? So for me, there was always this appreciation, this love for it because the way they're able to cover the game is just something different. And I've always loved it. And so maybe people are seeing me just simply having fun doing something that I've enjoyed watching for a long time.
MA: So that's why I guess the Telemundo broadcast really connects with you. But I wonder if you could say more about that because I think what's so interesting about this tournament is the number of people who don't speak Spanish who are tuning into Telemundo to watch the games. What do you think it is about the way the games are broadcast that has captivated people?
ALTIDORE: Well, you know, ironically enough, you know, here in the U.S., I think we're known to the world as doing things in a showmanship manner. But I think with the broadcasting, I think it's been something a little different. I think the guys have done a great job on the English-speaking networks calling the games and making people feel excited about what they're watching.
I just feel you have an uncomparable (ph) advantage in Spanish. Things simply sound more dramatic. Things simply sound more exciting. And that's just the pure nature of the culture and the game being so inundated in that culture as well. So there's many ways in which the Spanish-speaking broadcasters are able to kind of put a story together or explain certain things. And I think, you know, people really, really enjoy that.
MA: Turning to tomorrow's match, the final - tell us, what are you going to have your eye on? Any particular player or story you're especially interested in?
ALTIDORE: Well, I mean, I - like everyone else, I'm extremely captivated in the Lamine Yamal and the Lionel Messi link, right? You know, obviously, as soon as Argentina made the final, I'm sure you - like many - have seen the photo circulating of when Messi and Lamine Yamal linked up at a photo shoot for UNICEF 20 years ago, and he was a baby, and now he's playing in a final. And it's just like - it's almost like he was touched by the hand of God or something. Like, to have that - like, so many things have to happen, right? - from that photo till today to make this a reality. And, you know, I think there are a few moments in life where I think you can really see that there's some divine intervention, and I think this is one of them.
It's just an incredible storyline to have this kid now playing against his idol, who he now occupies the position of, the number of in Barcelona. It's absolutely spectacular, and I'll be watching that closely to see how such a young kid handles all this immense pressure, but also hopefully that he plays a wonderful match because it's going to be one that's going to be under his belt for a long, long time. And I hope it's one that he's proud of, and I hope he plays a great game.
MA: This may be a dangerous question, but any predictions from you of who's likely to win?
ALTIDORE: It's so tough to tell. I think this World Cup has told us, take your predictions and do what you want with them. I think it's - there's been a lot of upsets. So it's tough, man. It's really, really tough. My mind says Messi. My heart says Spain and Lamine.
MA: We've been speaking with Telemundo's Jozy Altidore. Thank you so much for taking the time.
ALTIDORE: Thank you so much for having me. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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