A quadrennial international women's football world championship tournament, 2015 marks the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup, the first time the event was held in Canada and the third time overall in North America. Matches were played in six cities across the country, spanning five time zones. Expanding the tournament this year to include a total of 24 teams, up from the original 16, added an extra set of challenges-with many of the early series requiring 12 hours of coverage, seven days per week.
Using outdoor remote studios in each of the cities made equipment selection essential. "The environments that we were in were very loud, especially at home base, which had an active sea plane terminal directly behind it," explains Kevin Callahan, Fox Sports Technical Director, World Cup. "We selected the dual-ear d:fine first and foremost for its excellent wind and noise rejection. The versatility of the mic was also important as there were many instances when the presenters, many of whom are former professional soccer players, would give on-screen soccer demonstrations."
In order to adequately cover the increased number of matches, in a mainly outdoor environment, a d:fine mic was used for each of the 16 presenters to capture the audio commentary from this complex event. In addition to the live broadcast, the event was also recorded for playback on the FIFA and FOX websites.
Additionally, the overall design of the d:fine allowed Callahan and his team to more effectively hide the mics on the presenters to avoid them being an eye sore on screen. "The d:fines are very small and come in a variety of colours, so those both proved useful to concealing them on the presenters," adds Callahan. "The small form-factor of the d:fines also provided added comfort during the grinding production schedule."
(Jim Evans)
