Serie A, B and C unite for anti-broadcast piracy campaign

   Serie A has launched its new season with a renewed campaign against audiovisual piracy, this season pushing into into Serie B and Serie C stadiums for the first time.

The initiative, now in its sixth year, is being rolled out across the opening two rounds of Serie A matches.

Piracy remains a major concern for Italian football. Figures from 2024 suggest that 38% of adults admitted to illegally accessing films, television or live sport at least once. Researchers estimated 295 million such acts during the year, with a €2.2 billion hit to the wider economy and more than 12,000 jobs at risk.

What frustrates rights-holders further is that most people know it is illegal – three-quarters of teenage users and nearly 80% of adults said they were aware piracy was a crime. Yet almost half insisted they were not doing significant harm. Encouragingly for the leagues, almost half of those confronted by blocked pirate sites said they switched to legal services.

With Serie A, B and C now presenting a united front, Italian football is hoping the wider reach of the campaign will help push more fans towards legitimate viewing and protect the value of broadcast rights across the pyramid.

Luigi De Siervo, CEO of Lega Serie A, said: “The message we want to convey with our campaign is clear: illegally watching a match causes significant economic damage to Italian football and weakens its chances of success in European competitions. But above all, it has serious economic, reputational and even criminal consequences for those who use pirated content.

“In fact, thanks to the commendable action of the Guardia di Finanza, from this year onwards, those who use unauthorised streaming platforms are effectively exposed to penalties, both criminal and financial, and may face legal proceedings, with repercussions on their private and professional lives.”

Serie A will raise the curtain on the new season tomorrow evening.