HYDERABAD: Lega Serie A will soon have an India play, Luigi De Siervo, CEO the Italian football’s top tier league has asserted.
“India and Asia in general represent a key market for our international development. We are thinking of developing a series of social and promotional activities in India because of the growing interest in the game there,” De Siervo told reporters during a teleconference on Thursday.
De Siervo also raised the possibility of pre-season games involving Italian clubs being played in India. “Probably in the future we will be able to bring matches to India, the Italian Super Cup is a product that we export and we often play in countries that are interested in hosting it,” he said.
While that possibility is more a wish than probability at least in the near term, De Siervo had more concrete news to offer as well, when he said: “In the coming months we will develop an international business plan which will also include activities in India.”
De Siervo also spoke about the impact the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus has had on the league as a whole. “It has aroused great interest both on the domestic and international fronts. It would be enough to think that in just over a year, thanks to the international visibility guaranteed by his more than 180 million followers, the Instagram account of Juventus has gone from around 10 million followers in July 2018 to the current 31 million.
“Ronaldo has raised internal competitiveness: he represents a strong incentive of comparison to one of the best players of all time and raised the level of the game precisely for this reason. He has given new impetus to our championship. His contribution to the Serie ‘A’ development and growth is priceless,” Siervo said.
