Last weekend, the hunt against piracy was underway again within French football. The regulatory authority for audiovisual and digital communication, known as Arcom, launched a targeted operation aimed at combating illegal IPTV offerings due to the demands from broadcasters amid the 26th matchday of Ligue 1, highlighted by the much-anticipated showdown between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Olympique de Marseille (OM) on March 15, 2025.
Starting on March 14, Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 clubs disseminated messages urging fans to fight against piracy, creating awareness around the issue. This targeted operation saw Arcom preparing two waves of blocking actions, occurring 30 minutes prior to and after the PSG-OM match. Drawing on collective efforts between broadcasters such as DAZN and beIN Sports (who cover Ligue 1), along with the Association for the Protection of Sports Programming (APPS), they agreed on collective blocking actions around this marquee championship event.
"Once the infringement reports are established by the rights holders, and the list is identified, we can only trigger the blocking at times which maximize efficiency," explained Pauline Combredet-Blassel, Deputy Director-General of Arcom, speaking to L'Équipe.
Over the course of the weekend, 171 domain names were blocked, effectively reducing the access to illegal streaming options. Comparatively, when the two clubs faced each other during the match on October 27, 2024, 340 illegal domain names had to be taken down, marking nearly half the count this time around. This decrease, according to Combredet-Blassel, reflects the significant advancements made through sustained efforts since the inception of the season.
"We conduct massive operations nearly every weekend now. The main explanation for the observed decline is the repetition of actions, which influences the turnover and number of targeted services," added Combredet-Blassel. Although the initial findings show diversification of illegal services targeted, the true impact of these operations on viewing numbers tends to be less clear immediately after the matches.
"The impact of these actions is not easy to evaluate immediately afterward, as we lack the figures from the broadcasters," she noted. Nonetheless, Arcom regularly tracks audience changes, with metrics provided by Médiamétrie surfacing two to three months later showing optimistic trends: piracy is progressively declining since the implementation of the new system.
Despite persistent monitoring, the volatile nature of piracy means significant dips may still occur during high-profile matches. During the earlier OM-PSG encounter, approximately 55% of viewers chose illicit streaming, revealed through recent studies commissioned by LFP Media. This figure remains troubling even as the French authority ramps up its anti-piracy measures.
Earlier this year, Brice Daumin, the Director General of DAZN France, pointed out the administrative fatigue involved in tackling piracy. Speaking candidly to Le Figaro, he viewed peer nations, particularly England and Italy, as benchmarks of effective enforcement. "Arcom doesn’t work weekends. While we can block 10,000 links within two days in England, Italy achieves 18,000 active links taken down, contrasted with the mere 5,000 annually by Arcom. Simply put, Italy can accomplish within one weekend what takes Arcom three-and-a-half years!" he declared.
Daumin's comments reflect the urgency surrounding the fight against piracy, as insistent illegal streaming options negatively impact legitimate subscription platforms, with DAZN currently having approximately 500,000 subscribers as of mid-February 2025.
With PSG triumphing over OM with a score of 3-1 during this latest encounter, the stakes remain glaringly high. Both the clubs and the broadcasters continue to push for stronger measures against piracy, but as discussions around effectiveness linger, the challenges faced remain ever oiled and acute. The battle against illegal streaming services is hardly simple, but efforts are underway to combat the threat, with Arcom and the respective broadcasters striving to secure the future of legitimate sports broadcasting.
