The original World Cup trophy was unveiled in Kolkata on Friday as organisers and sponsors looked to cash in on the sports rising popularity five months before the worlds biggest football extravaganza kicks off in South Africa. While a replica of the FIFA World Cup trophy made its way through the country in a promotional event in 2004,this was the first time the original was brought here. With the English Premier League and Serie A England and Italys premier domestic tournaments flashing every weekend in Indian drawing rooms,football has seen a big surge in the Indian market. Up to 34 million viewers in India had tuned in to watch the 2002 World Cup held in Korea-Japan,but that number had gone up to 50 million by the time Italys Fabio Cannavaro held the trophy aloft in Germany,2006. The broadcast rights for the event have gone up from $3 million in 2002 to $8 million in 2006 and $40 million in 2010,which will be telecast by Ten Sports. The 2006 edition,which was showcased on ESPN Star Sports,got a total rating of 1.98 in cable and satellite TV households in the 15+ age group and the ratings are comparable with those cricket generates. The inaugural matches of IPL-2 and World T20 championships,for instance,had ratings of 3.2 and 1.1 respectively,while those for the Champions Trophy T20 were even lower.
