Pro League backs #PlayFair campaign against illegal streaming

The Belgian Pro League has joined the #PlayFair campaign against illegal streaming, linking the fight against piracy to the financial future of domestic football. The initiative seeks to steer viewers towards legal services while highlighting the risks attached to unauthorised websites and IPTV providers.

Launched by Belgium's FPS Economy and the Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel, the campaign brings together the media, sports and cinema sectors. Legal streaming helps return media-rights income to football, supporting competitions, infrastructure, youth development, quality content and the fan experience. Illegal services instead infringe copyright and can contribute to lost VAT income, tax fraud and money laundering.

Live sport is the second most illegally streamed content category in the European Union, according to EUIPO data. Fans using illicit platforms may unknowingly expose their names, contact details and banking information, which can be sold or exploited for phishing and other scams. Belgian authorities blocked 2,031 websites over two years, while the FPS Economy's information page on the blocks has attracted more than 800,000 visits.

The campaign is supported across Belgium's audiovisual industry, including the sports sector, the Federation of Belgian Cinemas, Agoria, the German-speaking Community's Medienrat, the Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications, and the SACD. The Pro League has called for continued cooperation with public authorities, justice bodies and other stakeholders to protect the sport's future.