Inside Dallas' role in bringing the World Cup to the world
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FIFA president Gianni Infantino says the Dallas IBC is "the most technologically advanced and top-of-the-art international broadcast center that the world has ever seen." Photo: Naheed Rajwani-Dharsi/Axios
Video feeds from the World Cup's 104 matches will route through Dallas before being broadcast to millions of fans around the world.
Why it matters: Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center is serving as the tournament's International Broadcast Center (IBC), a link between 56 media partners and their national and international audiences.
- It's one example of Dallas' outsized role among World Cup host cities. Nine games will be played at AT&T Stadium — rebranded Dallas Stadium for the tournament — more than any other site. And North Texas is hosting two team base camps.
Vibe check: Green carpet, plants and natural wood accents have transformed the otherwise drab convention center. Roughly 89 miles of broadcast cables weave through the facility.
- The IBC houses a master control room for broadcasting, as well as a "football operations center," central equipment room, onsite laundry, restaurants and banking services.
- "We have to maintain a small little city here to support the broadcasters," senior IBC manager John Newkirk tells Axios.
How it works: The IBC is staffed 24/7 and will receive video feeds from venues and distribute them to FIFA's media partners after intensive quality checks.
Yes, but: The IBC is off limits to the general public and local media.
The intrigue: Jamie Oakford, a match director, will be based in New Jersey and work with his colleagues in Dallas to decide which shots should be broadcast — similar to the conductor of a symphony.
- "When you go to a match, you sit in certain seats, but you don't get replays, you don't get close-ups, you don't feel the emotion that the TV can give you," Oakford tells Axios.
- "My job is to recreate or to give all those moments to the fans."
Fun fact: This World Cup will be a full-circle experience for Oakford. He was a junior producer during the 1994 World Cup, editing feature stories out of the Dallas IBC.
- "The World Cup is the biggest stage in the world. It's the best players, best fans, best atmosphere, best stadiums. It's a delight to be part of that," he says.