Manchester United and Liverpool players warn against Premier League piracy

Football fans were recently served a reminder from Premier League stars such as Manchester United’s Casemiro and Liverpool’s Diogo Jota against piracy as part of the League’s “Boot Out Piracy” campaign.

Done in collaboration with its Singaporean broadcast partner, StarHub, the “Boot Out Piracy” campaign aims to raise awareness among football fans of the risks and detrimental effects of streaming illegal content.

Don’t miss: Premier League launches campaign to combat piracy in SG

In a series of videos featuring Premier League players, the campaign highlights the dangers of accessing Premier League content through unofficial websites or streaming devices.

For example, Manchester United’s Casemiro reminds audiences of the risks of cyber-attacks, malware, and ransomware when people access pirated channels in a video. Beginning with footage of a football game, the screen is interrupted by a pop-up prompting the user to enter their bank details to receive cash winnings. The screen turns into a crumpled paper ball as Casemiro steps in, reminding audiences that pirated sites place people at risk of scams, data theft, and fraudulent activities.

As the video cuts to smoother, more vividly-coloured footage of the same game, it further highlights the unreliable and poor-quality streaming experience that users can generally expect on pirated sites.

With taglines such as “Don’t fall victim to scams, choose celebrating with the fans” and “Don’t risk identity theft, choose back of the net”, the videos each point out a reason against using pirated sites to access Premier League content, while imitating the interruptions, audio glitches, and low-quality visuals of pirated footage.

The videos will appear across broadcast channels, social media, websites, and YouTube in the region, including Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The “Boot Out Piracy” campaign follows a June 2023 report by the Digital Citizens Alliance, titled “Giving Piracy Operators Credit”, which found that 44% of users who access pirated content online had experienced instances of identity theft. It also revealed that 46% of users engaging in piracy had experienced malware, compared to only 9% who did not engage.

Given these risks, the Premier League has maintained its close working relationship with local authorities in Asia and globally to bring criminal action against website operators and suppliers of illicit streaming devices.

According to a press release seen by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, the Premier League’s close collaboration with the Intellectual Property Rights Brand of the Singapore Police Force (SPF) has led to successful anti-piracy raids and arrests. In 2022, the SPF arrested 17 illegal streaming device vendors from Sim Lim Square. 2019 also saw a landmark legal victory against a retailer that had been enabling illegal broadcasts of Premier League football and other entertainment content.

In Singapore, government regulators have also continued efforts to target sports piracy syndicates in the region by disrupting illegal streams and limiting access to unlicensed and unregulated gambling operations. According to the release, over 450 domains of illicit streaming devices and websites responsible for pirated Premier League content have been blocked through such efforts. Further rounds of blocks are anticipated for the upcoming season.

“We know how passionate fans in Singapore and across Asia are about Premier League football. Through the ‘Boot Out Piracy’ campaign, we continue to highlight the significant risks of watching matches through illegal streams,” said Kevin Plumb, Premier League general counsel.

“By accessing pirated content, people make themselves vulnerable to criminals, who use a wide range of methods to compromise the devices of viewers. This can lead to numerous issues, including fraud and identity theft,” Plumb explained, adding that those who use pirated sites also miss the best possible viewing experience. He further urged fans to watch Premier League content through its official broadcast partner.

“The risks of identity theft, scams and malware are real. We encourage viewers to subscribe to a safe and good quality streaming experience with StarHub, to enjoy unmatched affordability and an entertaining breadth of Premier League content,” added Veronica Lai, chief corporate and sustainability officer at StarHub.

This is not the first of the Premier League’s efforts to combat piracy in the region. In 2022, the “Boot Out Piracy” campaign saw its second run, featuring stars such as Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold and Leicester City striker, Jamie Vardy.

The athletes similarly appeared in a series of videos that sought to raise awareness of the security risks of viewing the football content on illegal websites and devices.

“Our message is that it isn’t worth taking this risk because we know these sites contain malicious content which can expose people to numerous issues,” said Plumb at the time.

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