MUMBAI: It is a known fact that Bengal is the mecca of Indian football. That East Bengal and Mohun Bagan continue to rule the hearts of millions of Bengali’s was proven yet again with the success of the Derby match held during Calcutta Football League. People tuned in hoards to watch the most followed tie in Bengal, according to Star India.

The match was watched by 19.7 lakh viewers on Jalsha Movies that surpassed the viewership of the FIFA World Cup Finals (18.3 lakh) on Sony Aath, according to data provided by Star India.

This is also the highest rated Derby match ever across any channel in Bengal. It garnered a rating of 266 TVTs in M 25 + AB and 801 TVTs in CS 4+ beating all previous records.

Not only did the viewers tune in but on an average they spent over 66 minutes watching this engrossing match.

The hall mark of this year’s CFL is its short, tighter schedule and for the first time ever in the leagues history, the tournament will be decided in a month’s time.

Star Jalsha and Jalsha Movies business head Kevin Vaz commented, “The success of the Derby match and the average match ratings of CFL strengthens our belief that football is big in Bengal.”

He added that the the channel would continue to bring unmatched football coverage with never before seen packaging, high definition slow motion cameras along with commentary by former national football captains which they hope will bring in new viewers.

Jalsha Movies reaches out to nine million viewers every week. The channel which has showcased some of the biggest movies is optimistic of increasing its footprint even further with its foray into football.