WorldCup2018
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World Cup tweets were viewed 115 billion times
Twitter had high hopes that the World Cup would be a big hit on its platform. The previous games in 2014 happened before the platform released video features, but this time around, it secured a deal with the event's US rights holder Fox Sports, as well as others across the world, for exclusive content like highlight clips and interviews. As the dust settles following the French team's triumph over underdog Croatia's squad in Sunday's final game, Twitter has released its own numbers to give us an idea how the World Cup went for the platform.
The World Cup showed how VAR will shape soccer’s future
For every football (aka soccer) fan, it doesn't get any bigger than the FIFA World Cup. Every four years since 1930, the tournament has been held in different parts of the globe, and honestly, it hasn't changed much. There was the expansion to include 32 teams in 1998, but the game's rules have rarely been altered -- largely because of FIFA's unwillingness to embrace emerging technologies. But the 2018 edition in Russia, which ended Sunday with France's win over Croatia, was different. For the first time ever, FIFA used the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) at its flagship competition. And the tech, for better or worse (depending on which team you cheered on), certainly made a mark.
Even the World Cup couldn't escape the 'Fortnite' fever
Now that England is out of the 2018 World Cup, there's one thing we're really going to miss about its team: The goal celebrations from midfielders Dele Alli and Jesse Lingard. While professional athletes creatively expressing themselves after scoring is nothing new, these guys stood out because their quirky moves were inspired by none other than Fortnite. Best of all, they did it at the world's biggest sporting event. Fortnite's mark on the World Cup in Russia is just the latest example of how inescapable the Epic Games' survival title is.
YouTube TV apologizes for World Cup downtime with a free week
In the middle of Wednesday's World Cup semifinal match between England and Croatia, YouTube's live TV service suffered an unfortunately-timed outage (not unlike ones we've seen from Sling or Hulu). Naturally, it enraged YouTube TV subscribers who had picked up the service specifically to catch live broadcasts like that game, and now it's offering an apology in the form of a credit. In an email that went out to customers, YouTube TV promised a free week, which for customers on its standard $40 per month plan should amount to $10 off. It also noted that DVR'd recordings of the full match should be available in the Library -- if you can stand to watch that one again.
Social media made the World Cup fun again
Like a lot of England fans, I have a complicated relationship with our national football team. Nobody fetishizes a noble failure like, or hold a grudge for anyone deemed too successful, like we do. Tournament football is therefore an exercise in violent cognitive dissonance as we try to cultivate a sense of hope for the men's team. Except this time, it wasn't that painful at all, and watching this World Cup has actually been fun, and it's all thanks to Social Media.
PSVR’s World Cup ‘executive suite’ is more ludicrous than luxurious
In case you wanted another way to watch this year's World Cup from Russia, PlayStation has you covered. Sony's gaming division has partnered with BBC Sports VR to put you in a virtual executive box replete with a gigantic window overlooking the pitch. More than that, you'll have a choice between three different "seats" on the fly, too: behind each goal and from the midfield line. You just need a PlayStation 4, PSVR helmet and the BBC's free World Cup PSVR app.
A World Cup match was the 'most-watched' Spanish livestream ever
The World Cup started last week, and with all the livestreaming options, it's no surprise that the matches have already attracted an enormous amount of views. But yesterday's match between Argentina and Croatia broke a new record when its Telemundo digital broadcast became the most-watched Spanish-language livestream in history with 4.3 million livestreams, which racked up a total of 68 million minutes viewed.
'Fortnite' marks World Cup with stadium and goal scoring challenges
You didn't think Epic Games would let a sporting event as momentous as the World Cup go by without a Fortnite tie-in, did you? Sure enough, the developer has made a slew of updates to mark the beautiful game's most important tournament. There's now a hard-to-miss stadium map, and your weekly challenges now include scoring goals on fields across the island. And naturally, there's plenty of themed items to buy with your spare V-Bucks.
Video referee technology influences its first World Cup goal
When FIFA greenlit the use of video assistant referees at the 2018 World Cup, there was one overriding question: how long would it take before the technology shaped an important call? Not long at all, apparently. Two days into the group stage, officiators have used VAR to call for a key penalty after Australia's John Risdon appeared to have fouled France's Antoine Griezmann with a sliding tackle, disrupting a charge toward a possible goal. Griezmann promptly scored on the subsequent penalty kick, giving France the lead.
Watch the World Cup 2018 in VR on Oculus Go and Gear VR
The Oculus Go- and Samsung VR-compatible platform Venues was introduced the back in May as an immersive VR experience placing viewers within a simulated stadium for sports games and events. What better way to kick it off than with the World Cup? Select games will be livestreamed for free in Venues courtesy of Fox Sports, starting with Germany and Mexico's game at 8AM PT on June 17th.
Twitter is making it easier to follow your favorite topics and events
Twitter has always been the ideal site for conversations and reactions around live events, be it a sports game, an awards show or serious breaking news. Up until today, you've been able to use the Twitter mobile apps to get notifications from specific accounts you're into, like an NBA team or a media outlet, as well as breaking news. But now, the company wants to take that one step further and make it easier for you to see the latest about events and topics you care about. You'll notice this in the form of push notifications that will be sent to your phone based on your particular interests, including who you follow and what you tweet about.
How to watch the World Cup 2018
For soccer (er, football) fans everywhere, the next four weeks are going to be all about the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. The globe's biggest sporting event, which takes place every four years, is kicking off Thursday, June 14th, when host nation Russia takes on Saudi Arabia at 11AM ET. And yes, we know the USA team won't be there, but football is bigger than just one nation. So even if you won't get to cheer on the Stars and Stripes this year, there's still plenty to look forward to at the World Cup.
YouTube's World Cup coverage includes near-live highlights in Spanish
If you're eager to follow the 2018 World Cup online en español and can't watch live, you might have a viable alternative. Telemundo has teamed up with Google to provide "close to real-time" video highlights in Spanish for American viewers. Search for matches, scores and teams and you'll see goals, halftime highlights and other stand-out moments through YouTube. It should be useful in between games, too, with match previews, news and other useful info.
Facebook Messenger adds World Cup-themed filters and games
From video games to sports broadcasters to Twitter, everyone's getting World Cup fever. So why not chat apps? Facebook Messenger is getting several features timed for the global soccer event, including camera and a few games to play with friends you're talking with.
Goldman Sachs’ AI predicts Brazil will win the World Cup
Goldman Sachs is giving another go at predicting which team will win this year's World Cup. After incorrectly predicting how the 2014 tournament would turn out, it's trying again and its calculations say that France, Brazil, Portugal and Germany will make it to the semi-finals with Brazil beating out Germany in the final game.
Inside Fox Sports’ plan to bring the World Cup to your living room
Tucked in the back of Fox Sports' Charlotte facility, a typically unused storage space was abuzz with activity in early April. A Los Angeles-based crew took advantage of the extra room in what used to be the headquarters of the Speed network to test gear that will be used to broadcast live soccer action from this summer's World Cup. There's no eye candy inside this warehouse space, but the final preparations that went on here are essential to sniffing out any potential issues before all the gear is packed into shipping containers for a monthlong voyage to Russia. In the span of a few hours, I'd learn what Fox had planned for the 2018 World Cup -- from in-depth preparations to a special studio, AR, VR and streaming.
This PC case doubles as a foosball table
Computex is a wonderland of crazy PC mods, and this year is no different. We've seen cases that look like a miniature airplane, to one that resembles an old-fashioned record player. What is arguably the most insane of the lot, however, is this one made by Taiwan-based I.I.D Maker Studio. Yes, that's a massive PC, complete with MSI X299 Gaming M7 and MSI 2370 Gaming Plus motherboards, MSI Geforce GTX 1080 Ti Gaming X graphics cards, a Thermaltake watercooling rig, six small displays fitted along the inside walls, all housed inside a make-shift and completely functional foosball table. Because, you know, the World Cup is coming up. But also because it looks absolutely incredible. Have a closer look at this amazing tribute to computing, and football, in the gallery below. Click here to catch up on all the latest news from Computex 2018!
'FIFA Mobile' has a playable World Cup of its own
FIFA 18 players have been enjoying their own World Cup mode for a few weeks, but now FIFA Mobile has its own version of the event. From now until August 1st, folks can choose from 32 qualifying nations and play a unique campaign for the global competition. Fret not, countries that didn't make it to the world's stage (*cough* USA *cough*): Like the console version, players can take one of 16 non-qualified nations through their own separate story mode.
‘FIFA 18’ let me live out my World Cup fantasies
It took a few tries, but I was finally able to lift the World Cup trophy with my beloved Mexico in FIFA 18. It wasn't an easy feat, either; I had to get past football superpower Germany in the final. But it happened, a 3-2 win! And that's probably the only way I'll ever get to see Mexico win soccer's most important competition. Over the past few days, I've spent most of my spare time playing FIFA's new Russia 2018 World Cup mode, which EA Sports made available free to all owners of the game on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. That gesture alone deserves a lot of credit, since during the last World Cup in 2014 the developer released a standalone game for the tournament that was $60. And that was just for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The latest-generation of consoles only got a disappointing, stripped down version.
Fox Sports' World Cup Highlight Machine is powered by IBM's Watson
We're only ten days away from the start of the FIFA World Cup 2018. And for soccer (er, football) fans in the US, Fox Sports will be the TV network responsible for bringing them all 64 games from Russia, at least if they want to watch them in English. But, beyond its broadcast offerings, Fox Sports wants to keep people engaged in the competition in different ways. Aside from its partnership with Twitter, which comes in the form of a show that'll stream live from Russia, Fox Sports has teamed up with IBM to build the ultimate World Cup Highlight Machine. Powered by Watson artificial intelligence, this video hub lets you create on-demand clips from every FIFA World Cup tournament dating back to 1958.
