La Liga and Instituto Cervantes unveil the ‘Spanish-Bengali Football Dictionary’

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The love for Football can break every barrier along the way. And language by no means is a difficult barrier when it comes to that.

And recently, the football-loving fans of India have taken a unique step towards making that possible.

La Liga and Instituto Cervantes unveiled the 'Spanish-Bengali Football Dictionary' at the Spain Pavilion, International Kolkata Book Fair. Spain being the Fair's focus country, the dictionary aims to enable football vocabulary in both languages; boosting content creation, social interactions & movement between fans.

The Kolkata Book Fair is the largest book fair in Asia and the prestigious book launch took place on

The dictionary was presented Marti Bassets - Head of Culture at Instituto Cervantes Delhi and Jose Antonio Cachaza - Managing Director La Liga India with the participation of Sonsoles Ballesteros-Vexenat, Secretary of the Embassy of Spain in India, Prithijit Das - representing AIFF and Aakriti Vohra - La Liga Global Network Delegate.

Building bridges through Football, the dictionary includes information about La Liga, Spain and football in general. Kolkata being India's football sanctuary, the book will allow fans to better engage with LaLiga; Understand sporting milestones, football actions, as well as a wide range of football terminology. Additionally, it will also provide the vocabulary for social interactions & provide conversation guidelines for public interactions.

Speaking at the gathering, Jose Antonio Cachaza, Managing Director La Liga India said, "Our connect with India has greatly increased through a variety of stakeholder engagements. Collaborating on multiple fronts, the dictionary will serve as a celebration and catalyst for future engagements. It is well known that football is an unmovable part of Bengali identity. Though the book, we hope to unite & further strengthen our relationship in the West Bengal region, while continuing to bilaterally grow through football."

Marti Bassets - Head of Culture at Instituto Cervantes Delhi added, "The bridging of the language barrier is tantamount to open collaboration. Breaking down the language to help our counterparts understand and engage with one and another is not only necessary, but essential for fruitful bilateral conversations. With both regions being connected through football, it is this unifying measure that will help lay the foundation of connection on which the dictionary will layer on."

Sonsoles Ballesteros-Vexenat, Secretary of the Embassy of Spain in India said, "There is no better place to launch this dictionary than the Spanish pavilion at the 'International Kolkata Book Fair'. Football is a strong link between Spain and Kolkata. This dictionary created by LaLiga is a useful tool that will strengthen the mutual understanding between our two countries."

Kolkata is undoubtedly the biggest hub of football in India and fans of both Real Madrid and Barcelona are aplenty in the region. Bengalis are also rich in culture and it will come as a boon to them who would now be accustomed to the familiar Spanish terms of Golazo!, Usa La Cabeza!, Tiro de Esquina! and many more, through the book.

(with inputs from agency)