LaLiga: football in Central Asia lives with great passion
ORIENT met with the representative of the Spanish LaLiga, responsible for Central Asia and Iran, Haiz Rahmani, who shared the plans about Turkmenistan.
- What is La Liga as a commercial brand?
- LaLiga is one of the most popular professional sports leagues in the world, omprised of football clubs and public companies that compete in the professional categories of the Spanish Football League (first and second divisions).
Our goal is to give the audience a special feeling from watching football matches, showing them the best of what we have. We strive to be recognizable, so that while watching football it is clear that it is LaLiga, no matter which teams play. Our brand is now more global, more responsible and more modern. Our new campaign embodies this approach with its slogan “It's not football. It’s LaLiga.”
LaLiga plays an essential part in people's lives, and this is the starting point from which we reinvent a world that extends far beyond the pitch.
Through this campaign, we show the true extent of LaLiga's global reach and how we spread our brand values, beyond just the sporting competition. All of this is brought to all four corners of the globe, from Canada, Kenya, Thailand to Turkmenistan, through the best technology on offer and local social media platforms, which guarantees the highest standard of broadcasting and immerses viewers of all ages, cultures and nationalities in a unique experience.
- What is your activity in the region?
– The main goal of our activity is to increase the brand value and awareness of LaLiga in Central Asia. We create synergies with local TV media and operators, search for new business opportunities in Central Asian countries, and develop comprehensive interaction between LaLiga fans. At the same time, we are the focal points for our clubs in the region.
For example, we have concluded agreements with large telecommunications companies in the region, organized four large football camps with the participation of former football stars as Mendieta, Baptista and Garcia.
In Uzbekistan, for example, we have entered into a strategic partnership with local football leagues as well as we help them in all areas of their football organization.
In this context, we recently held a seminar both in Madrid and in Tashkent with experts from various departments of the professional football league of Uzbekistan.
In addition, as a part of activities in collaboration with LaLiga, Under-15 SD Eibar stars earned international acclaim in visit to Uzbekistan to hold a training camp and a master class, and faced the local Under-15 team in a friendly match that was broadcasted on national TV. It was a historic event, because the Spanish club first came to Uzbekistan.
- How you promote LaLiga in Central Asia?
- We do it by personal presence in the market, creating interest and increasing interest in our product.
There is one concrete example: we recently organized an event in Tashkent – a public viewing of LaLiga with the participation of a renowned local star, singer Shahzoda, and former player of Barcelona, Atletico, Liverpool and Spain national team Luis Garcia.
Uzbekistan enjoyed ElClásico match between Barcelona and Real Madrid on the big screens installed in the Milliy Stadium. Prior the match, Luis Garcia held a master class for young Uzbek football players. In addition, at the beginning of the program, there was a concert program with the participation of Uzbek pop stars.
At the end of the event, the fans could chat with the ambassador of La Liga Luis Garcia and take pictures with the main trophy of LaLiga. Despite the severe frosts and bad weather conditions, more than 13 thousand people attended the event, which was broadcasted live on various channels.
So, we won the hearts of the fans and brought a piece of LaLiga to their country. We want to distinguish ourselves from other big leagues by such an activity.
- Why is Central Asia important for LaLiga?
- Central Asia is an important market for us, because football lives here with great passion. We have a strong fan base in the region, which actively manifests itself through social networks and many other events.
For LaLiga, the most important element of the internationalization is to come together with our fans. Through local partnerships with Central Asian organizations, we can achieve our strategy of continually improving relationships with fans, introducing innovations both in terms of digital content and in terms of sponsorship.
Central Asia has always occupied an important place in the geography of the world and is now taking the role as a bridge between Europe and Asia. The new Silk Road is being revived by new trade routes, the region would be better connected and integrated with other parts of the world than ever before.
As LaLiga, we also foresee to get closer with our fans in Central Asia, as well as to help develop local football leagues.
