Mumbai: Viacom18 Sports has announced its list of regional commentary panelists for the upcoming Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup. The world’s most prestigious soccer competition will be presented to audiences in India in five languages: English, Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam and Bengali on JioCinema, which is now available across Jio, Vi, Airtel and BSNL subscribers. From November 20 to December 18, all viewers can watch the competition on the Sports18, 1 SD and HD pay TV channels.
Dempo SC CEO and former coach Pradhyum Reddy and Brazilian footballer Jose Ramirez Barreto will form a panel of English experts. Indian footballer Robin Singh, current India women’s national team goalkeeper Aditi Chauhan, Kerala Blasters FC assistant coach Ishfaq Ahmed and former player Karan Sawhney will form the Hindi language panel.
“The panel delivers on our commitment to present FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 like never before with regional customization and new perspectives from seasoned experts and first time in five languages on JioCinema, which is now available for download on Jio, Vi, Airtel subscribers, and BSNL. We are trying our best to offer the best experience to viewers across geographies so that they can enjoy the FIFA World Cup the way it was meant to be,” said Viacom18 Sports head of content Siddharth Sharma.
Former India men’s national team goalkeeper Subrata Paul and former players Mehtab Hossain, Alvito D’Cunha, Shilton Paul and Manas Bhattacharya will address the crowd in Bengali. Tamil viewers will be able to enjoy the voice of renowned former Indian performer and commentator Raman Vijayan along with Nallapan Mohanraj, Dharmaraj Ravanan and Vijayakarthikeyan. Coverage in Malayalam will be led by former and current national team players Jo Paul Ancheri, CK Vineeth, Mohammed Rafi, Rino Anto, Sushanth Mathew and Feroz Sherif.
The panel will form part of Visa Match Center Live, which will provide fans with the best FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 experience, including in-depth analysis, pitch-side coverage and dressing room access from the comfort of their home. Visa Match Center Live will be a customized immersive studio event in all five languages on JioCinema, with legends such as Wayne Rooney, Luis Figo, Robert Pires, Sol Campbell and Gilberto Silva joining for English coverage.