Univision’s World Cup Pitch to Women Pays Off

Months before the World Cup, Univision unveiled its plan to reach female viewers, many of whom are devoted to the Spanish-language media giant’s daytime talk shows and telenovelas.

The primary weapon has been a series of promotional ads that overtly emphasize the multitude of manly qualities of various star footballers -- with a woman’s sultry voice-over. The strategy to link soccer and the steaminess of telenovelas appears to have worked.

Combined with other elements designed to attract female fans of Univision’s lifestyle programming, weekday World Cup viewership for women 18 to 49 has soared by 74 percent, to 646,000, from the regular programming in the month before the tournament began.