LALIGA becomes first football league in the world to reach 10 million subscribers on YouTube. As a result, the platform will bestow LALIGA with the Diamond Play Button award, which can only be obtained when the aforementioned number of subscribers is reached. It is also the second highest possible award, only surpassed by the Red Diamond Play Button, which is awarded when 100 million subscribers is reached. Additionally, LALIGA’s YouTube channel has accumulated more than 3 billion views, a number that reflects the loyalty and huge popularity of the content among the competition’s followers.
In the Sports category, only 19 channels have reached this milestone worldwide, notably the NBA, NFL, UFC, Olympics and F1. Meanwhile in Spain, 41 Diamond Play Buttons have been awarded to creators in the Sports category, with only LALIGA clubs Real Madrid and FC Barcelona represented.
For Alfredo Bermejo, LALIGA’s Director of Digital Strategy, “this milestone is a sign of our ongoing work to continually adjust to the changes that occur in this industry, adapting content and creating new forms of entertainment which continue to provide our followers with the content they demand. We are proud to be the first football league to achieve such a milestone and it motivates us to keep working in the same spirit”.
The channel, which started operations in 2012, has been developed and managed by GRUP MEDIAPRO and has gradually increased its subscribers. In fact, it’s also a good example of LALIGA’s internationalisation, as in addition to Spain, where most subscribers come from, Indonesia, Mexico, India and the United States complete the top 5 countries of origin for subscribers to the LALIGA YouTube channel.
Ignacio Arrola, Marketing Director at GRUP MEDIAPRO, highlights that “becoming the first football league to achieve this distinction is the result of more than 10 years of work with LALIGA and YouTube. We are delighted to be part of this success and to help position LALIGA in first place globally. At GRUP MEDIAPRO we will continue to adapt to new digital consumption formats and create new strategies to connect with fans”.
Acoording to Cristina Delgado, YouTube Sports & News Lead España y Portugal, “LALIGA has been an example of innovation and adoption of digitalization. Both MEDIAPRO and LALIGA chose to create an exclusive YouTube channel to reach their global audiences, and their results place it as the main football league on YouTube. We are proud of their success”.
The YouTube channel is part of LALIGA’s digital ecosystem, which currently has more than 218M followers. The YouTube channel is a fundamental pillar for enhancing the direct relationship with fans. This strategy is focused on strengthening the links with fans, thanks to a variety of content formats. This season, LALIGA has bolstered its strategy of generating and producing short vertical videos for shorts with the aim of connecting with football fans by offering the best moments from the championship. Shorts have been added to a solid base of content on the channel, where users can enjoy highlights from each matchday, as well as connecting with the platform’s other content, such as compilations and historic moments from the championship. In fact, this season, growth has also been accelerated by the complete overhaul of weekly content and the inclusion of new formats such as match previews and play-by-play streams, special match experience vlogs and video podcasts, with the addition of two new podcasts: LALIGA Talks: Interviews in English with LALIGA players, reporters and commentators.
Capitanes: Podcast hosted by former player and LALIGA commentator Alberto García, where he talks to club captains about what it means to be the leader of the team.
