FIFA centralizes 2026 World Cup production at Dallas IBC hub

The 2026 World Cup represents a massive scale test for remote production, moving complex shading and replay operations away from individual venues to a centralized hub. By leveraging Verizon’s connectivity and AI-driven tools like EVS Extra Motion, FIFA is attempting to standardize editorial quality across 16 different locations while navigating a crowded U.S. summer sports calendar. This shift signals a broader industry move toward 'talent centralization,' where the highest-tier broadcast operators are no longer required to travel, directly addressing global labor shortages and sustainability goals. Watch for real-time latency performance on the Dallas-to-venue loops, which remains the primary technical hurdle for remote shading and VAR consistency.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup, spanning 16 host cities across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, is the first edition to feature an expanded 48-team format and 104 matches. To manage this unprecedented scale, FIFA has designated the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas as the International Broadcast Centre (IBC). According to FIFA official reports from June 2026, the facility houses approximately 2,000 media representatives and serves as the epicenter for the tournament’s Video Assistant Referee (VAR) operations. The site also acts as the distribution point for 180 global broadcasters, connecting an estimated audience of six billion viewers.

Technological partnerships are central to this decentralized production model. Per Social Football Summit (June 2026), FIFA’s collaboration with Lenovo has introduced 'Referee View,' a body-camera system that uses AI to provide perfectly stabilized first-person footage to broadcasters. This follows successful trials at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Furthermore, Lenovo ThinkSystem servers at the IBC are managing the distribution of 10 IPTV channels to more than 1,000 screens across stadiums, achieving sub-five-second latency to prevent spoilers for fans in attendance, as reported by NewscastStudio in June 2026.

This infrastructure also marks a significant leadership transition for Host Broadcast Services (HBS). According to TVBEurope (April 2026), HBS CEO Dan Miodownik and COO Luc-Antoine Charial are set to step down in September 2026 following the conclusion of the tournament. The 2026 World Cup represents the final major project for the veteran leadership duo, who have overseen HBS's expansion into AI-driven workflows and IP-native systems. Their exit aligns with the industry-wide move toward software-defined ecosystems and hybrid cloud production models, which HBS has pioneered during the current 2024–2026 mega-event cycle.