Italy/Piracy: "5,000 fines prepared for pirate users" (Ezio Simonelli, Lega Serie A)

"The League is getting very close not only to those who provide the signal, but also to the users. 5,000 fines have already been prepared for identified individuals who will be punished. It's not a big fine, unfortunately only €50, but in the case of a repeat offence, it can be up to €5,000. It's a lot, but we'd like to have an impact with the Guardia di Finanza (Italian customs and financial police) on the reputation of those who receive this fine," said Ezio Simonelli, president of Lega Serie A, at the "Il Foglio a San Siro" event organised at the Stadio Giuseppe-Meazza (Milan, ITA) on 10/04/2025.

"For many people, piracy is not considered a crime but a trick, and on this subject, if the clubs help me, I'd like to create an awareness campaign. Something along the lines of 'I wish I'd bought a centre-forward, and if everyone subscribed, I might have bought him'. I'd like to launch something like that," added the president.

The law aimed at combating the piracy of broadcasting, particularly sports broadcasting, has been in force in Italy since 08/08/2023. The Piracy Shield platform…