The piracy of live sports broadcasts is causing harm to the global sports ecosystem, especially for major events like EURO 2024.
The UEFA European Football Championship (EURO) has become one of the world’s most thrilling sporting events. The technical and tactical prowess of teams in the group stages, followed by the elation and heartbreak of the knock-out rounds, makes each tournament unforgettable in its own way. This year’s competition is no different; 81 goals were scored in the group stage alone. We’ve already seen history being made, with Romania topping their group for the first time in their country’s history, and the fastest-ever EURO goal by Albanian winger Nedim Bajrami, 23 seconds into their fixture against Italy. It’s no surprise then, that EURO 2024 is expected to have reached a cumulative global audience of 5bn, making it one of the most-watched sporting events in the world. In the MENA region alone, beIN has seen a record-breaking cumulative viewership of over 1.2bn for the month-long tournament.
Alongside its global audience, media rights for the EURO are estimated to be some of the most valuable in the world of sport. The last edition of the tournament in 2021 achieved a staggering revenue of €1.1bn in media rights, and UEFA has suggested that the value of global rights for EURO 2024 will surpass this figure by at least 25% (UEFA). Delivery of such a complex broadcasting product is a vast undertaking, relying on a global network of professionals; UEFA alongside 130 broadcast partners in over 200 territories, with over 1,800 staff, are working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that fans across the world can tune in to watch every match.
Whilst huge numbers of fans watch games through UEFA’s authorised partners and providers, who have paid these millions of Euros to acquire the broadcast rights, illegal viewing and online piracy remains significant.
Piracy of live sports broadcasts is creating lasting damage across the global sports ecosystem, particularly for events as significant as EURO 2024. Pirate networks in the MENA region alone cost beIN Media Group $1bn a year. The EU Intellectual Property Office reports that 12% of EU citizens turn to piracy to watch sports – that figure rises to more than a quarter among European young people aged 15 to 24. Synamedia and Ampere Analysis found sports service providers and rights holders are missing out on up to $28bn in new revenue as a direct result of illegal sports streaming.
This trend points to a worrying future for sports fans, as sports piracy eats away at the business of the legitimate broadcasters on which their illegal channels depend. And the damage goes far deeper than this; when sports broadcasters suffer a loss in revenue, it has a direct impact not only on the content quality, but also broadcasters’ ability to invest in sports and offer local jobs across the production line. A loss in revenue also results in broadcasters unable to bid for rights to sporting events, meaning UEFA and sporting organisations alike are directly impaired. Spectacular events such as EURO 2024, as well as domestic leagues globally, rely significantly on investment from broadcasters.
In recognition of the risk of piracy to the entire football ecosystem, increasing efforts are being made to tackle it, by broadcasters, leagues and industry associations. More and more resources are being put into monitoring, legal enforcement and technology. Collaboration is key – both public and private – as is education and awareness.
There is evidence that these efforts are working. The availability of pirated beIN content online is dropping substantially. The pirates who have built huge businesses stealing and distributing beIN channels are feeling under increasing pressure and can no longer enjoy the impunity they used to.
However, at the same time, some of the old challenges remain. It is disappointing to see huge numbers of people still being able to use mainstream social media platforms to watch games illegally. While some of the big players like META and YouTube have worked with rights owners to reduce the availability of pirated live content on their platforms, others like X, are doing very little. During the group stages of EURO 2024, 1198 illegal streams have been identified on X, which were being watched by hundreds of thousands of users. In the absence of any effective cooperation from X, there is very little that rights owners can do to prevent the massive abuse of broadcast rights in this way.
The fight against sports piracy is ultimately a shared responsibility across rights holders, owners and authorities, but it will benefit the entire sports industry. A coordinated effort is needed by all parties to tackle the issue, particularly from social media platforms, and an event as significant as the EURO must reignite discussions around sports piracy and its damaging effect across the sports eco system.
