DUBAI: The World Cup is all but over so one could question the point of the exercise but FIFA has “engaged counsel to take legal action in Saudi Arabia” against BeOutQ for illegally broadcasting World Cup matches in the Middle East, as other sports federations have joined a chorus of calls for the pirate operator’s closure.
“FIFA urges the authorities of Saudi Arabia and of the different countries where these illegal activities have been observed to support us in the fight against piracy,” football’s governing body stated, in reference to BeOutQ, where the 10-channel system has been broadcasting off Riyadh-based satellite operator Arabsat, which lists the Saudi government as its pricipal stakeholder.
“FIFA urges the authorities of Saudi Arabia and of the different countries where these illegal activities have been observed to support us in the fight against piracy,” the statement further reads.
FIFA’s call comes after tennis’ governing bodies issued a joint statement last week, condemning BeOutQ’s pirated coverage of major tennis tournaments across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region over the past year.
The statement was supported by the the International Tennis Federation, the United States Tennis Association (USTA), the French Tennis Federation (FFT), Tennis Australia (TA), Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and the Women’s Tennis Association.
European football organisation UEFA, Confederation of African Football (CAF), Spain’s LaLiga and Formula One’s governing body FIA have also denounced the piracy operation by the bootlegging network to no avail.
To be clear, BeOutQ’s piracy of the World Cup (and UEFA tournaments before that) is a product of regional politics. The root of the problem lies in the fact that it is beIN Sports that holds media rights for all the major sports in the MENA region – that includes FIFA, UEFA, Formula 1 and major tennis events.
BeOutQ sprung up as an in your face pirating TV station with beIN as its chief target in the wake of the declaration by Saudi Arabia (which its allies, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt rubber stamped) in June 2017 that Qatar was sponsoring terrorism in the region. Following the declaration, the Saudi Arabia-led bloc severed diplomatic and transport ties with Doha and imposed an economic blockade on the Gulf state.
After it launched its blockade, Saudi Arabia banned the sale of beIN broadcast boxes and stopped existing customers from renewing subscriptions. Which is what has led to the World Cup not being officially broadcast in the country.
