City supports EFL anti-piracy campaign

Piracy and illegal streaming impacts clubs financially, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic with matches behind closed doors, and there is a greater dependence on streaming than ever before.

The club would like to thank its supporters who back the players on a matchday by tuning into Robins TV, which is a service available to Season Card holders and non-Season Card holders on a game-by-game basis - your continued support is invaluable.

At Bristol City, the income generated through Robins TV is one of the only revenue sources available at this challenging financial time.

Clubs up and down the country are impacted by piracy which is illegal, with civil and criminal action a real possibility for offenders. People who choose to watch illegal streams are essentially taking money away from their club, as all money generated through streaming income goes back to the EFL clubs.

The EFL and its clubs take piracy incredibly seriously, working with partner Opsec to proactively seek out illegal streams on all formats and taking action against businesses and individuals. OPsec take a multi-tiered approach to fighting piracy across all major channels and content types.

Supporters are encouraged to report any illegal streams they come across or pubs that may be showing EFL content unlawfully. Please email piracy@efl.com and all emails will be treated confidentially.

Piracy stats for 2020/21*

• Almost 7,000 illegal EFL streams have been detected so far this season - with an average of 170 people viewing each stream – that’s almost 1.2million people
• The EFL and subsequently its Clubs could potentially lose at least a third of its income from illegal streaming this season, the reality is that this figure is probably a lot higher as it is impossible to detect every illegal stream
• Over half of sports fans consume sports content from pirate services at least once a month*
• Over a quarter of those using illegal sites and services have paid these services for access*
• Just 16% of online sports fans say they never watch via illegal sources*
• To highlight the scale of the illegal market, a recent study estimated that 3.6% of the EU population stream copyright infringing IPTV (which corresponds to 16 million people), whereas the revenue generated by illegal IPTV was estimated to be nearly €1 billion in 2018.

*Provided by an Ampere Analysis white paper in 2020 entitled charting global sports piracy

Once again, Bristol City Football Club thanks its fans for their support during these challenging times.

Robins TV will return on Saturday (November 20^th) for when City host Derby County in the 3pm kick-off.

Secure your matchday pass