Spanish authorities said Friday they had shut down the country’s biggest illegal streaming platform Cristal Azul, which had been offering La Liga and second-division football matches online for free.
“More than 78,000 community members… were benefiting from the broadcasting, defrauding two well-known Spanish companies of more than €42 million,” said Spain’s Guardia Civil, a national law enforcement agency, in a statement.
The operation began following a complaint filed jointly by La Liga and broadcaster Movistar, and finished with the identification of the alleged perpetrator, a 37-year-old man, now under investigation.
The operation is a victory for La Liga president Javier Tebas in his battle with illegal streaming, which he considers to be “theft” that could drive football “into bankruptcy”.
