By Andrea Caropreso
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One of the most complex battles to win is undoubtedly the fight against piracy. The phenomenon of illegal consumption of sports audiovisual content is on the rise, and every year clubs face multi‑million euro losses. Over the years, many streaming platforms in Italy and across Europe have been shut down, but the notorious “pezzotto” remains a central worry and alarms presidents of the various European leagues. “It’s like in The Great Chase: we’re always in pursuit,” said Serie A League president Luigi De Siervo in 2024. “As soon as we catch them, they move to another server.”
Clubs’ losses
According to estimates by FAPAV (Federation for the Protection of Audiovisual and Multimedia Content Industries), the statistics institute Ipsos, and De Siervo himself, clubs lose around €300 million each year due to piracy. That’s a considerable sum, especially given the fragile condition of Italian football. Each time broadcasting rights are sold, it must be taken into account that the “Serie A” product is devalued—partly because of illegal content consumption.
Losses are linked to piracy for the following reasons:
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Lost TV‑rights revenue: Broadcasters (Sky, DAZN, etc.) purchase rights based on their paying subscriber base. If many people watch matches illegally, the perceived value of those rights falls.
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Reduced sponsorship income: A drop in the number of “official” viewers can lead to lower certifiable visibility, discouraging sponsors.
Moreover, value also drops because broadcasters earn less based on their subscriber numbers. In Italy, for example, the value of domestic Serie A rights fell from €973 million per year (2018–21) to about €927 million per year (2021–24)—a trend that also reflects the impact of piracy.
Problems across Europe as well
According to a report by La Liga, clubs lose between €600 million and €700 million annually due to piracy—a practice in Spain that exceeds the EU average by 25% and grew by 36.5% between 2021 and 2023. 59% of Spaniards admit to using piracy to watch football at least once a month, and the financial losses amount to nearly half the revenue generated from audiovisual rights in a season.
Things aren’t any better in England, where the Premier League released a report on anti‑piracy efforts carried out during the year. According to Enders Analysis, about 60% of English people used a pirate platform at least once during the year. As a result, the government took steps to block illegal services at the source—losses for Premier League clubs are estimated at around €1 million per game.
The operation led to the blocking of more than 600 000 illegal streaming sites and 350 000 access links to platforms showing matches.
By Andrea Caropreso
