Football was once more celebrated in India than cricket, and footballers revered as the ‘Brazilians of Asia’ internationally from the 1950 through the 70s, until the sport’s decline in the ’80s.

The Indian National Team was a world beating side. But that was a long time ago. And those stories are long forgotten. So much so, that most of India believes Indian football just isn’t, and hasn’t ever been, at the same level as the country’s beloved sport - cricket.

Budweiser, FIFA World Cup sponsors since 1986, used the world’s most-watched sporting event to tell The Indian Football Story, to pay homage to the glory years of Indian football and football fandom in India, and highlights its bright future.

Its objective was to connect with football fans across the country and spark conversations, bust myths, deeply inspire and acquaint Indians with the nation’s glorious footballing history.

The Indian Football Story, is a 3 part docu-series, designed to remind India of her illustrious footballing past. It ported the conversation around football and India's will-they-won't-they relationship with the FIFA World Cup. For this spiral to begin, the campaign employed the oft-repeated myth that India qualified for the Football World Cup 1950 but did not compete because the team played barefoot.

It being the closest India has ever gotten to qualifying, Budweiser wanted to use this opportunity to debunk the myth, and instill the brand ethos of ‘The World Is Yours To Take’ within viewers, celebrate the rich football history of India and inspire India to qualify for the next world cup supporting the underdog that is Indian football.

Budweiser had the opportunity to connect with football fans across the country in a manner unlike before - by sharing knowledge, sparking conversations, and deeply inspiring them about the sport.

As enthusiastic supporters, viewers can drive a sportsperson to their full potential and make or break a sport whether through stadium or screen viewing. The campaign was designed to reach out to millions of such fans across India through research, archival footage, interviews with sports historians, journalists, writers, and star players Bhaichung Bhutia and Sunil Chhetri.

Taking 2.5 months to execute, it attempted to expand football's acceptance beyond its stronghold regions – West Bengal, Northeast, Kerala, Maharashtra and Goa.

It also highlighted the laurels of the Indian Women's National Football Team to encourage more viewership and participation in women’s football. The campaign’s tremendous impact is evident from thousands of audience comments on the docu-series.

Calling the documentary interesting, a fan said, “I didnt realise how big of a culture Football is in India,” and Rampau H Zeliang added, “We need to learn from our glorious past to revive our football!”

Budweiser had the opportunity to connect with football fans across the country in a manner unlike before - by sharing knowledge, sparking conversations, and deeply inspiring them about the sport, in turn associating the brand with global football and owning the conversation. It instilled confidence in viewers that with their support, India could qualify for the FIFA World Cup tournament.

The campaign’s reach involves:

10M+ video views

18M reach

75M impressions for the docuseries

1.6B impressions for the brand

$37MN Net Revenue

29.5 to 30.7 increase in brand power

The impactful journey is exemplified by thousands of comments on the docuseries.

Souradeep Ghosh says: “I’m amazed by this story! I am convinced that besides hockey, football was India's preferred choice of sports post-independence; I firmly believe there’s hope for Indian football, and we'll reach the greatest stage again!” Gouranga Mondal says, “Thank you! Gathered so much information about Indian football.”