Football's popularity is "growing in India by leaps and bounds," according to Taruka Srivastav of THE DRUM. A recent study by Velocity MR observed that post-World Cup, Indian football fandom "received a great boost" and 84% of respondents claimed that they will support the Indian team in its upcoming matches. To exploit this opportunity, La Liga has "established itself in India." La Liga Head of India Jose Cachaza said, "India is one of our international strategic markets and we understand that interest of business in India is more as a future market than a present market. Nobody can overlook the fastest economy in the world, along with the fact that football is growing rapidly in the Indian market. Cricket is a religion in India, but football does come second." As to what steps are being taken by the organization to "further boost football's popularity in India," Cachaza highlighted the "importance of a direct relationship with people." He said, "We are following a 360 strategy and for us, digital strategy is fundamental because it allows us to connect directly to the fans. We are taking lot of attention to it as it shows that two years ago we had just 300,000 followers on social media and right now we have above 3.3 million." La Liga also announced a three-year broadcast partnership with Facebook for the Indian subcontinen. As part of the deal, Facebook will show all 380 matches live and free. Cachaza: "The important thing in this digital connection with fans is the new broadcast agreement with Facebook, in which all the La Liga matches can be watched for free on Facebook" (THE DRUM, 10/14).
