MUMBAI: LaLiga has launched a new global brand campaign entitled ‘It’s not football – It’s LaLiga’.
While the campaign “It’s not football. It’s LaLiga” was launched in Spain Monday, it also reached an international audience is as many as 182 countries via 90 broadcasters that show Spain’s top flight club football every week. In this market, Sony Pictures Networks India is the host broadcaster for the league.
Pertinently, Asia is a key focus area for the campaign, which aligns well with LaLiga’s declared ambition for India to become their largest overseas commercial market within the next five years.
LaLiga is more than just a form of entertainment, it plays an essential part in people’s lives, is the key message that that the campaign delivers, representing the starting point from which the organisation will “reinvent a world that extends far beyond the pitch”.
The new campaign makes the point that the LaLiga brand is now more global, more responsible and more modern, embodied with its slogan “It’s not football. It’s LaLiga”.
Elaborating on the essence of the campaign, Europe’s biggest football league in terms of sheer spectacle and the quality of talent on show declared: “Through this campaign we will show the true extent of LaLiga’s global reach and how we spread our brand values, beyond just the sporting competition. LaLiga is behind socially responsible initiatives that give hope to those who have lost almost everything (such as the refugee camps in Thessaloniki and Jordan), that make dreams come true (LaLiga Genuine), and that put a smile on the faces of our youngest fans (Future Fans), as well as teaching them the importance of respect and instilling in them the universal values of the beautiful game.
“LaLiga is also a spectacle, of course; it’s entertainment of the highest calibre, replete with moments of comedy, passion, drama and suspense. All of this is brought to all four corners of the globe through the best technology on offer, which guarantees the highest standard of broadcasting and immerses viewers in a unique experience.”
Coming back to LaLiga’s India ambitions, as Joris Evers, LaLiga’s chief communications officer, told UK’s Independent newspaper recently: “India in particular is a country where we’re seeing major growth in the love for futbol. We established a physical presence in the market and will be increasing our effort to promote LaLiga to gain more fans in the country.”
Meanwhile, the clubs themselves are becoming increasingly alert to the opportunity that India provides. Last month, Barcelona announced that their legends team would play in Mumbai in January; last year, Barcelona’s president Josep Bartomeu declared that he was “sure we will come to India in the next two to three years.”
Barcelona already have two football schools in India, to train players and nurture talent – all the while doubling as a marketing tool for the club. Rival super club Real Madrid also runs schools in India.
Discussions have already begun on taking a friendly El Clásico to India in 2019, just as happened in Miami last summer. “La Liga is global entertainment and we want to grow the international appeal of La Liga. As part of that effort we are discussing the option of playing some of the league matches outside of Spain. These discussions are still in early stages, but as La Liga we support the idea,” Evers told the daily.
In its global tussle with the Premier League, this might be La Liga’s most important competitive advantage: staging league games in foreign fields, thereby positioning itself as both Spain’s football league and the world’s football league, Independent notes.
