The United States Department of Justice announced on Monday that it had shut down more than a thousand internet domains used to illegally stream matches from the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The move formed part of a wider push to tackle digital piracy and safeguard copyright.
The action was carried out in three phases over the course of the tournament and sat within Operation "Offsides", led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) alongside the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (the National Centre for Intellectual Property Rights Coordination).
Operation "Offsides" and the seized domains
US authorities said the websites were providing unauthorised live broadcasts of World Cup fixtures, in breach of US copyright law. The domains were identified with support from FIFA and several audiovisual rights holders, including beIN Media Group, NBC Universal, Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, UFC and Warner Bros.
After the seizure, people attempting to visit the domains could no longer access streams and were instead shown a Department of Justice and HSI notice stating that the site had been seized under a court order.
A. Tysen Duva, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division at the Department of Justice, said: "The ongoing effort to shut down more than a thousand domains dedicated to illegally streaming the World Cup confirms the administration’s commitment to protecting intellectual property and to the success of the 2026 World Cup."
Warnings about malware and payment data
Duva also said the operation was intended to "reduce the risks to American consumers caused by the malicious software embedded in many illegal streaming services".
Funds criminal networks
Ivan J. Arvelo, Director of the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, stressed that "the unauthorised streaming of World Cup matches violates intellectual property rights and funds criminal organisations".
Arvelo added that the operation helped to disrupt the activity of hundreds of platforms distributing copyrighted material.
Matthew Millhollin, Executive Associate Director of HSI, warned of the dangers linked to using illegal platforms. "Anyone running these sites is already willing to break the law by streaming copyright-protected matches and may also install malware or steal users’ payment data," he said, urging supporters to stick to official services.
Investigators said HSI agents had verified that the domains now seized were broadcasting World Cup matches in real time without authorisation. Following the seizure, users were met with a federal authorities’ message confirming that the domain had been confiscated.
"Red card"
The US operation ran alongside an international action called "Operation Red Card", coordinated through the International Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property programme (the International Programme for Combating Computer Crime and Protecting Intellectual Property).
Across multiple countries in the Americas, thousands of illegal sites were blocked, including 1140 in Colombia, 309 in Brazil, 256 in the Dominican Republic, 223 in Ecuador, 28 in Peru and 14 in Argentina.
In Colombia, authorities also carried out 13 searches linked to the production and distribution of counterfeit sportswear, resulting in 11 arrests and convictions.
In a second phase of the operation, four alleged members of the "Los Ciberinfiltrados" cybercriminal group were arrested on suspicion of unlawfully accessing telecommunications systems and selling pirated content-including World Cup matches-using fraudulent credentials, VPNs and manipulation of corporate systems.
US authorities also said that, since 2020, the Department of Justice’s specialist cybercrime and intellectual property section has secured the convictions of more than 180 cybercriminals and intellectual property offenders, and recovered more than 350 million dollars for victims.
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