Looking for a certain someone to host your show? You’ve come to the right place! Very experienced in anchoring live sports broadcasts (particularly football) from the studio or the field - either improvised or scripted, but always prepared.
Interviewer
One of the best aspects of my vocation is really taking the time to get to know someone and to have their story told their way. It’s one of my greatest joys to have the privilege of regularly conducting in-depth interviews with some of the biggest sports names on the planet.
Reporter
The reason why I got into the biz! I’ve extensive experience traveling across continents and reporting from the field. You can find me anywhere from a major sporting event to the red carpet, but most often pitch side at a football stadium.
Event Host
On occasion, I step out of the studio to lend my hosting skills for another use. Be it inaugurating an International Football Business Institute as the MC or hosting a live efootball competition, I make sure to help the audience leave with an entertaining experience to remember.
Portfolio
A sneak peek of my glass cabinet!
LaLiga TV
Highlights of studio work
Sky Sports News & BBC
Football pundit
Champions League
The pinnacle of European football
eFootball / PES League
European and World Finals
PUMA Football Launch
PUMA Órbita for LaLiga 2022-23’ season
Player Interviews
In-depth chats with stars
Heineken Deadline Day
With Fabrizio Romano
MetaSoccer
Interview with Arsenal’s Thomas Partey
LaLiga Promo
Innovative technologies for 2020-21
Who am I?
My sports broadcasting journey
March 11
A football fan is born
Hi there! I’m Semra. Welcome, and thank you for stopping by. Please allow me to tell you a little about myself. I’m a Los Angeles native where, aged three, I picked up a soccer ball for the first time…and never looked back. Sports - particularly European football - started off as a hobby, but quickly became the focus of my entire life. I very actively played a wide variety of sports throughout my life, and even became a Junior Olympic volleyball champion when I was 17. I have long been vested in the sports world, which made the shift from avid athlete to sports broadcast journalist the perfect fit.
Mar 2013 - Jul 2013
Al-Jazeera Sport / BeIN SPORTS
I began my sports broadcasting career in 2013 as a multilingual sideline reporter when I started working for Al-Jazeera Sport / BeIN SPORTS in Madrid, Spain. Within several months, I was sought out to join Real Madrid’s Spanish and International club channels at RealMadrid TV.
Jul 2013 - Jan 2016
RealMadrid TV
During my time with the club, I hosted several studio shows in both English and Spanish - The Match, Extra Time, Real Madrid Life - while also covering games and conducting weekly interviews with Real Madrid players and coaches. In the summer of 2015, I traveled with the team to cover their pre-season tour in Australia and China, while also presenting several special programmes for Real Madrid Life.
Jan 2016 - Feb 2018
TRT World
After eight years of life in Spain, I traded Madrid for Turkey. Based in Istanbul, I took on a role as Sports Anchor and Correspondent for the then newly established international broadcast network, TRT World. Entering the channel during its formative stage, I had the opportunity to be part of a team which created a brand new 30-minute daily sports show, Beyond The Game.
For the show, as well as for news programmes, I covered some of the best sporting events on the planet - including the 2016 European Championship in France, the Champions League and finals, 2022 World Cup preparations in Qatar, Laureus World Sports Awards red carpet, Euroleague Final Four, and more. During which time I had the absolute honour of interviewing some of the sporting world’s greatest legends - Xavi Hernandez, Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt, Carles Puyol, Claude Makelele, Luis Figo, Fabio Capello, and more.
Feb 2018 - May 2018
TRT World - Champions League
After two years in Istanbul, personal reasons saw me return to Spain where I continued my collaboration with TRT World as a pitch side reporter, providing live pre-match and post-match coverage of Champions League matches.
Feb 2018 - Jul 2018
Konami / EMR
Now based in Barcelona, I also teamed up with eFootballPro / EMR as their host of Konami’s PES League World Tour 2018 for the European rounds in Barcelona, Milan and Berlin, as well as for the World Finals in Barcelona for both co-op and 1v1 modes of competition. Each individual event was made up of 11 hours of live streaming including presentation of the event, presentation of each round of competition, player presentations, player interviews pre- and post- matches, award ceremonies, and more.
Apr 2018 - Present
LaLiga TV
In the early months of my return to Spain, I also joined LaLiga TV where I have been working as a lead presenter for all of LaLiga TV’s weekend coverage of every game on LaLiga Live - unscripted and live - from Friday evening through Saturday and Sunday. Each broadcast also includes expert analysis by top former footballers and leading Spanish football journalists as in-studio guest pundits.
In addition, I travel across the country on a weekly basis to conduct exclusive, in-depth interviews with some of the best football stars, as well as promising newcomers. These interviews are done with every club across the league, in both English and Spanish, with players such as Marc-André Ter Stegen, Ivan Rakitic, Toni Kroos, Martin Ødegaard and Marc Bartra.
Aug 2022 - Present
ITV Sport
After securing rights for 10 LaLiga matches a season, ITV sought me out to head up their top-quality coverage as studio presenter. A role in which I host pre-match, half-time, and post-match shows alongside football legends and journalists who provide expert game analysis. Matches always include one of the three biggest clubs in Spanish football: Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Atlético de Madrid.
What's next? Let’s find out together!
Get in touch
Tell me about you
LaLiga TV
Highlights of studio work
LaLiga President, Javier Tebas, has long desired to grow the Spanish football league’s popularity across the globe from the day he stepped into office. The creation of a unique television channel, exclusively dedicated to the top tier of professional football in Spain, was one of the core ideas that he wished to implement as a way of helping to make LaLiga more accessible to fans abroad. From that point on, LaLiga TV was born.
The 2018-19’ season was the first full campaign for the official international LaLiga channel. I was brought in to front the match day coverage as the host of all the pre- and post- match coverage for every game, live and unscripted from the studio. A position that I’m very passionate about and continue to perform today.
But I’m not alone! I’m always in the wonderful company of top former footballers, managers, Spanish football journalists and commentators, all of whom provide invaluable expertise and insight which have enriched the overall quality of the channel. They include Gustavo Poyet, Terry Gibson, Gary Lineker, Lauren Etame-Mayer, Nayim, Andrea Orlandi, Gaizka Mendieta, Guillem Balagué, Graham Hunter, Sid Lowe, Toni Padilla, and many more.
When I’m not completely immersed in football debates in the studio with colleagues, I take the conversation on the road. I regularly travel across Spain for in-depth interviews with some of the best and biggest stars from every club across the league in English and Spanish, including the likes of Marc-André Ter Stegen, Toni Kroos, Ivan Rakitic, Marc Bartra and more.
Having said all that, this video clip is a mixture of some of my personal highlights in the studio from the 2021-22’ season broadcast into the homes of LaLiga fans the world over.
Date: 2018 - Present
Company: LaLiga TV
Category: Spanish Football
Sky Sports News & BBC
Football pundit
Apart from my main work as a presenter with LaLiga TV, I also collaborate with other media outlets across the globe in a punditry role as a Spanish football expert. In my television or radio appearances, I discuss anything from LaLiga to Spanish teams in the Champions Leagues or the Spanish national team and their various competitions, both in the men’s and women’s side of the game.
I also cover major breaking news stories - such as the Lionel Messi burofax bombshell in the summer of 2020, the Barcelona club financial and Bartomeu board situation during the same time period or the departure of Gareth Bale from Real Madrid on loan to Spurs, and plenty others.
While I currently collaborate regularly with Sky Sports News and the BBC World Service, I have also worked with BBC 5Live, BBC Sport, BBC Football Focus, Premier League Productions, CBS Sports HQ, CNN, TRT World, Soccer Laduma and more.
Date: 2020 - Present
Company: Sky Sports News / BBC
Category: Spanish Football
Champions League
The pinnacle of European football
While LaLiga has always been a major focal point throughout my career, it’s far from the only league that I’ve covered. The Champions League has been a constant throughout, from my days with RealMadrid TV and TRT World to now both Stan Sport in Australia, as well as DAZN UK. As an on-site presenter, I cover both the men’s and women’s competition. This entails both pre-, halftime and post- match coverage from pitch side positions, as well as the mixed zone.
Most recently I covered two major historic milestones in both the men’s and women’s games as the on-site presenter. Villarreal’s epic home triumph which set them up for the semi-finals after eliminating Bayern Munich. Plus the night that Barça Femení vs Real Madrid set a new world-record attendance for a women’s game at the Camp Nou, 23 years later. As well as live on-site coverage in Paris for Real Madrid’s historic 14th European Cup.
Some other highlights include in 2014, when I had the tremendous privilege of providing live-as-it-happens reporting from the early afternoon at the Santiago Bernabéu until the sun came up over the Plaza de Cibeles on the night of Real Madrid’s historic 4-1 victory in a first ever final between two teams from the same city. A fierce derby, no less.
Átletico de Madrid had taken the lead, but thanks to the heroics of Sergio Ramos that will forever live in the memory of every Madridista on the planet, 92:48’ would be etched into history books as one of the greatest ever football comeback moments, just as Los Blancos would become the first club to hit double digits in the European Cup by ‘finally’ lifting La Décima in Lisbon.
It wouldn’t be the only Madrid derby I’d cover in a UCL final, as two years later in 2016, I was pitch side in Milan for another epic clash between them. History would repeat itself with Sergio Ramos scoring again - this time giving Zinedine Zidane’s side the lead. But it wouldn’t be until Diego Simeone’s outfit took the game to a penalty shootout that Real Madrid would go on to raise Ol’ Big Ears for the 11th time.
Date: 2014 - Present
Company: Stan Sport / DAZN / TRT World / RealMadrid TV
Category: European Football
eFootball / PES League
European and World Finals
Since 2018, I’ve had the fantastic opportunity to dive into the virtual football world with Gerard Piqué’s esports company eFootballPro / EMR in partnership with Konami. The objective was to continue to grow their brand and top product - Pro Evolution Soccer, now known as eFootball. EMR has been responsible for organizing the European and World Finals since the 2018 PES League World Tour, for which they brought me in to host.
That season there were three rounds of European Finals - in Barcelona, Milan and Berlin - with the tour making its final stop, once again, in Barcelona for the World Finals. Each competition lasted eleven hours, all of which was live streamed by hundreds of thousands of PES fans across the globe.
Each competition had challengers for the crown in two types of modes - 1v1 and co-op. While the players were focused on vying for efootball glory, my purpose was as the main conductor of the event, the person who tied the day together smoothly from start to finish in as fun and entertaining a way possible.
Some of my main responsibilities included the presentation of the day’s event, presentation of each round of competition, player introductions, player interviews pre- and post- matches and award ceremonies.
In 2022, while my role remains the same, the competition format changed. Some of the biggest football clubs on the planet - FC Barcelona, Manchester United, Arsenal, Celtic FC, to name a few - have formed their own professional esports teams. The tournament is a 1v1 knockout style competition between eight clubs where each field a three-man team. This season’s competition has amassed more than seven million views in total on YouTube alone.
Date: 2018 - Present
Company: EMR / Konami
Category: Esports
PUMA Football Launch
PUMA Órbita for LaLiga 2022-23’ season
Apart from the footballers on the pitch, who steals the show each and every game? The football, of course!
I had the privilege of hosting alongside Spanish journalist Ruben Martin on behalf of PUMA - the official football sponsor of the Spanish league - and LaLiga to a live global audience in Spanish the unveiling of the brand new football for the 2022-23’ season: Puma Órbita.
The event was hosted in Madrid with special guests from PUMA and LaLiga, as well as various LaLiga footballers and influencers from the football world.
Date: 2022
Company: PUMA / LaLiga
Category: Football
Player Interviews
In-depth chats with stars
One of the most immense privileges I’ve had throughout my career has been the ability to sit down and spend quality time with some of the biggest legends the sports world has ever seen. Nothing quite compares to being told, face-to-face, not only about how each athlete has been able to make their wildest dream a reality, but the crazy tales and sidebar stories which bring such laughter, joy and appreciation that make the time spent with them truly special.
During my time with RealMadrid TV, my role as both presenter and reporter allowed me to come in contact on a regular basis with members of both the squad and coaching staff. Most often I found myself speaking with players like Gareth Bale, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, along with managers Carlos Ancelotti and Rafa Benítez.
It was when I moved to TRT World that the breadth of interviews I would go on to conduct across a wide variety of sports would become amplified. My role as a correspondent would take me all across Europe and the Middle East for the purpose of holding extensive conversations with all-time greats, such as Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, Simone Biles, Xavi Hernández, Carles Puyol, Luis Figo, Fabio Capello, Boris Becker, David Coulthard, Nadia Comăneci, and more.
That vast experience has laid the foundation for me to better execute my current role as lead interviewer for LaLiga TV. It’s a position I relish, and one in which I’ve had the fortune of having clubs across the league open their doors so welcomingly to allow for meaningful conversations with players, oftentimes up to an hour.
Date: 2013 - Present
Company: LaLiga TV / RealMadrid TV / TRT World
Category: Sports
Heineken Deadline Day
With Fabrizio Romano
Fabrizio Romano has become a cultural phenomenon as the guru of football transfers. His expertise on the subject really goes into full force on deadline day. For the close of the 2022 winter transfer market, Heineken sponsored a live 12-hour stream on Twitch with Fabrizio and his partner, Francesco Porzio, as they reported transfer news as it happened.
I was invited to join the team as co-host of the event, which was held in Amsterdam at the Heineken Experience. My role included presenting the latest news with Fabrizio and Francesco, holding conversations with Skype guests, fielding questions from viewers and most importantly, keeping the flow of the conversation going with dynamism and energy throughout the day.
In total, the stream captured almost 1.5 million unique views by the night’s close.
Date: 2022
Company: Heineken / Double Tap
Category: European Football / Transfer Market
MetaSoccer
Interview with Arsenal’s Thomas Partey
MetaSoccer is the first game launched of its kind in the newly established metaverse. The idea behind the game is that it’s a crossover between fantasy football and football manager, but with NFTs. All characters of the game (players, managers, club staff, etc.) are fictional, with the exception of a few real-life players which appear in the game. Arsenal’s Thomas Partey was the first.
To make the announcement, MetaSoccer wanted to go big. I presented the official launch (digital video) and also went to Partey’s house for an exclusive sit-down interview, all of which we recorded on site in London.
Date: 2021
Company: MetaSoccer
Category: Football / NFTs / Metaverse
LaLiga Promo
Innovative technologies for 2020-21
As part of the global kickoff for the 2020-21 season, LaLiga created a promotional video detailing innovative new technologies that would be introduced as part of the live broadcasting of games.
As one of the main faces of the league’s international broadcast, it was a huge honor to present the promotional video on behalf of LaLiga in both English and Spanish.
Some of the key elements of the video shared with media outlets across the world include the explanation behind the implementation of augmented reality, 3D graphics, data analytic features and much more.
To make the promotional video more interactive and fun, filming took place in key parts of the LaLiga HQ and Atlético de Madrid’s state of the art stadium, the Wanda Metropolitano.
