From Cardiff Met to the World Cup: The students, graduates and staff taking centre stage this summer

Cardiff Met Sport Broadcast students, graduates and staff are set to play their part in one of the biggest sports media operations in the world this summer, taking on broadcast roles connected to the FIFA World Cup.

In addition, former Sports Coaching and Development student, Harrison Kingston, takes on the role of Director of Performance Analysis for the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. The team’s Group C opener takes place on Saturday 13 June, with Morocco facing one of the most iconic nations in world football, Brazil.

Two Cardiff Met graduates and four current students from the MSc Sport Broadcast programme will be working for FIFA Host Broadcast Services at the FIFA / HBS London production headquarters in Olympic Park for seven weeks this summer.

Graduates Dan Rhydderch and Oliver Hampson will be joined by current students Jack Tapp, Eve Pearson, Dylan Odelet and Tom Flint as part of the operation, supporting the delivery of content and coverage for a tournament watched by audiences across the globe.

These graduates and students are part of a wider Cardiff Met broadcast contingent involved with FIFA during the tournament, with a number of current and former students working remotely and in the USA across different areas of the media and production operation.

Among the alumni involved are Aaron Ackerman, Harry Lowe, Alessandro Foglinio, Harvey Rutherford, Alex Goddard, Jake Allman and Oli Pau, alongside current students Sam Cocker, Joseph Dali-Kemmery, Oliver Buck, Jonah Jones, Matthew Austin, Megan Bowen and Oliver Tuffill.

Programme Director for the MSc Sport Broadcast, Joe Towns, will also be working for FIFA as a Senior Features Producer, based in Philadelphia for the group stages in June and one knockout match on 4 July.

The involvement of so many Cardiff Met students, graduates and staff comes as sports broadcasting is enters a new era. The tournament will feature more teams, more matches and more cameras than ever before, with innovations including AI avatars, enhanced player tracking, semi-automated offside technology, spider cameras, 360 cameras, referee-view footage and greater use of vertical and behind-the-scenes content.

Through practical experience, industry-facing projects and the work of Cardiff Met Sport TV, students develop the skills needed to operate in demanding live sport environments, from production and editing to storytelling, reporting, camera work, social media and live broadcast roles.

This is a fantastic opportunity for our students and graduates to work within a world-class broadcast environment. To see so many Cardiff Met Sport Broadcast students and alumni involved with FIFA is something we are incredibly proud of, and it shows the value of giving students real industry experience throughout the course.

Joe Towns – Programme Director, MSc Sport Broadcast