Telegram, IPTV… We explain how these illegal practices work and the legal consequences for watching football

Faced with the prices charged by broadcasters, more and more consumers are turning to illegal methods to follow Ligue 1 matches.

It was to be feared. The prices charged by DAZN – €30 minimum per month to watch eight of the nine scheduled matches each day of Ligue 1 – are pushing many consumers to turn to platforms, most of which are illegal. During the first match of the season alone, between Le Havre and PSG, on Friday August 16, tens of thousands of people were connected to Telegram streams (including 50,000 on a single account). Others used IPTV. But what do these practices consist of? Franceinfo: sport takes stock.

Streaming, IPTV, VPN… What is it?

Football fans have no shortage of strategies to get around DAZN or beIN sports subscriptions. To pay less, many resort to illegal streaming, via websites that broadcast matches with screen shares or foreign versions of the match, or via social networks. Live broadcasts are, in fact, broadcast on X (formerly Twitter). From this platform, it is also possible to find Telegram links. These redirect to lives made on the instant messaging platform.

Consumers can also use a VPN (or RPV in French, for “virtual private network”) which allows them to change their location and thus benefit from more economical international offers. In Brazil, for example, a YouTube channel broadcasts Ligue 1 for free.

Another popular practice is the use of IPTV (Internet Protocol Television), which consists of watching television using your internet connection. This device allows you to access VOD platforms such as Netflix, Disney +, Prime Video or Canal +. Most often, IPTV works using a decoder provided by a reseller.

Are these solutions legal?

As for IPTV services, they are legal if the IPTV provider pays a license giving them the right to broadcast content that does not belong to them. In this case, the provider often charges a subscription to its users. On the other hand, the system becomes illegal when the content broadcast by IPTV is pirated. Generally, in this context, users pay a subscription at a moderate price (between €20 and €50 per year) to have access to all TV programs, including those normally accessible through a full subscription. According to Arcom, 1.85 million people used illegal IPTV in 2023.

Legally, a user watching football via an IPTV broadcasting pirated content or via illegal streaming platforms (websites, Telegram, etc.) is guilty of receiving stolen goods and therefore risks five years in prison and a €375,000 fine (Article 312-1 of the Penal Code). However, in practice, no sanctions have been ordered against an IPTV user in France, as the authorities are primarily seeking to track down the broadcasters.

How is the LFP trying to fight?

Faced with the situation, the Professional Football League (LFP) welcomed, on August 12, having obtained from the Paris judicial court the blocking of live streaming sites and IPTV services. broadcasting the Ligue 1 McDonalds and Ligue 2 BKT championships without authorization. “While this decision is the fourth blocking injunction obtained by the LFP since the creation of the system to combat sports piracy in January 2022, it is the first to have been obtained before the start of a season,” the press release states.

Throughout the year, the League will also be able to contact Arcom to add other names to the list of sites and IPTVs to be banned. A facade victory for the LFP since, until now, fraudsters have regularly managed to find other ways to evade censorship measures.