Absent from the fifth matchday of the Champions League clash between Liverpool and his team, Vinícius Júnior still managed to draw attention. He is now accused of piracy.
A key figure in a major fight against racism in Spain, Vinícius Júnior has now found himself targeted by Javier Tebas, the president of La Liga, who has also become a prominent figure in the fight against audiovisual data piracy. Determined to curb the phenomenon of illegal streaming of football matches, which reportedly costs the Spanish league €700 million annually, the head of La Liga did not hold back against the Madrid star last Wednesday.
The supportive message that backfired on Vini
Following a post by Vinícius Júnior after the Liverpool vs Real Madrid clash, La Liga sent a letter to the Madrid club. Observing that the 2024 Ballon d’Or nominee was watching the crucial match on TNT Sport, a Brazilian channel, while he was in Madrid due to injury, Javier Tebas expressed his disappointment. According to the controversial La Liga president, who acts as a watchdog against audiovisual data pirates, the Brazilian star is also complicit in piracy.
“If Vinícius is in Madrid—and I believe he was in Madrid on Wednesday—this is piracy. Access to watch Champions League matches in Spain must be through Movistar Television. To view this content on another channel, he would have needed a VPN or a satellite dish aimed at another location. He was pirating the match. We have communicated to him not to pirate the match next time,” he declared.
According to reports, a clear message from La Liga has been sent to Madrid’s management to condemn this initiative. While no response is expected in return, it is worth noting that Real Madrid may need to educate its players to avoid falling under the scrutiny of Spain’s cyber police, who have been relentlessly dismantling piracy networks in recent months. Let’s not forget that Vinícius Júnior is not the only player caught in the act.
A few weeks ago, Fermín López, the young talent from FC Barcelona, was also caught by La Liga, which demanded sanctions. The latest reports suggest that only a warning was issued to the Catalan player. The club reportedly also paid a small fine, which was essentially intended for Fermín López.
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