The love for sports unites us and excites us, as well as this year’s participation of the Greek teams in EuroLeague and Conference League. Explosive emotional situations, intellectual confrontations and unique moments of sports, captivate us and make us feel alive. Team sports successes, however, not only affect adults, but also children, since they can inspire children to pursue their own goals and dreams and teach them the importance of effort, dedication and responding to opposition. Coping with failure can be made easier when the child sees examples of success after similar difficulties, and the shared experience of group support can strengthen a sense of social cohesion. After all, how can one forget the day when Greece took to the streets for the first time for a sporting event, when on June 14, 1987 it was identified as never before with the National Basketball Team that became European champions. This achievement marked a major milestone for Greek basketball and increased interest and support for the sport in Greece.

However, behind the glitter of the lights and the glamor of the hits, in recent years lurks a dark threat: TV piracy. TV piracy is one of the biggest problems facing sports today. Although many of us may not think about it often, piracy is a source of huge and illegal income for criminal organizations worldwide. The availability of pirated content via the internet, as well as social media, has created an underworld that preys on our innocence, infringing copyrights and causing massive damage to sports, culture, TV networks, content creators and of course jobs. Many people may not know, not only in Greece, but also in the rest of the world, that no sports team could survive without television rights revenues and sponsors, since these are the main driving force behind their development and participation in high-demand international events.

In Greece, this situation is particularly topical and shocking. While TV piracy continues to siphon huge illegal revenues of millions from the legal market, our sport is in a phase of great success. Greek teams have managed to qualify for the finals of European competitions, winning the hearts and respect of the public. However, this success should not only be taken as a cause for celebration. Instead, we should see the fight against TV piracy as another way to support the success of Greek teams. It is observed that fighting and reducing piracy increases the benefits of groups and brings success. The fight against piracy is not just a matter of legal order, but a support for sport and our athletes. Every euro taken away from pirates is a euro invested in the growth and success of our teams.

In the last months in Greece there have been dozens of operations against TV piracy, with dozens of arrests and multi-year imprisonment of the members of the criminal organizations.

In particular, in the last year there have been:

  • 12 coordinated police operations against TV piracy in homes and shops throughout the Greek territory.
  • 40 arrests.
  • 6 arrests of leaders.
  • Dozens of arrest warrants.
  • 40,000 ordinary end-users of illegal TV content are being targeted by law enforcement authorities, identified from customer lists found in police operations.
  • Dozens of felony convictions in courts across the country, with many years in prison for those involved.
  • 10,000+ reporting live links, streaming content & illegal social media.
  • At the same time, according to official data from the Intellectual Property Organization (IPO) of the Minister of Culture, the Commission for Internet Infringement of Intellectual Property has issued 122 decisions to stop pirated content in the last year, 1055 pirated IP addresses have been stopped ), as well as 91 illegal websites.
  • The Greek State has a leakage of income tax and VAT that cumulatively over the last ten years exceeds 1 billion euros.

Indicatively, the findings in the following coordinated police operations against TV piracy caused a sensation, according to some press releases and announcements issued by the Greek Police Services:

  • Disruption of a criminal organization, which is estimated to have made illegal profits of 10,000,000 euros, was done by the Security of Patras last year, when it arrested its 7 members, of which four were deemed temporary prisoners and they are targeting approximately 2,000 illegal subscribers.
  • Disruption of a criminal organization in September 2023, which was active in the provision of pay-TV services, was dismantled again by Patras Security Police officers, where 10 members (nine citizens – one foreigner) were arrested in areas of Patras and Attica, including the leader and the deputy leader, the treasurer and the dealers. The members of the criminal organization, having established a clientele of 13,000 people in Greece, managed to obtain an illegal financial benefit totaling more than 25,000,000 euros, at the same time causing a financial loss to the beneficiary companies, amounting to 100,000,000 euros.
  • In December 2023, the Electronic Crime Prosecution Directorate dismantled a criminal organization that was systematically active in the illegal retransmission of subscription channels. A case was filed against 12 members of the organization, of which -9- were arrested. -2- people were also arrested for illegal rebroadcasting and viewing, respectively. The case file also includes -43- customers of the organization, for illegal viewing of subscription services. The organization’s clientele numbered at least -2,000- people in Attiki, Ilia, Kozani, Thessaloniki and Crete, which is now the target of the prosecuting authorities. The illegal financial benefit they had obtained exceeds -420,000- euros, while the total damage to the legal companies providing subscription television programs amounts to -2,240,000- euros.
  • The Electronic Crime Prosecution Directorate arrested, in December 2023, a 45-year-old resident of Evia, who had set up a group channel on Telegram with more than 26,000 registered members from all over Greece, through which he shared the television signal of subscription channels without paying a legal subscription. A case file was filed against him for violation of the legislation on intellectual property and on the protection of subscription services, in succession and all 26,000 end users have now been targeted.
  • Within the first few months of 2024, there have been at least 6 coordinated operations against TV piracy in homes and shops across the territory, with a number of corresponding findings and information indicates that the identification procedures of the end-users of illegal TV content, who were identified from the clientele found in police operations.

These operations are doing more than simply removing pirated content. They realize the need for a legal and fair environment that favors creation and innovation. By supporting legitimate platforms, they contribute to the development of a cultural community that respects the rights of creators and athletes and encourages the creation of new content and healthy championships. Every legal market creates a welcoming environment for creators, athletes and artists, encouraging growth, championships and culture.

At a time when innovation and creativity are the drivers of economic growth, the persistent effort to combat TV piracy highlights Greece as a pioneer in upholding the law, innovation and cultivating the sports ideal. In doing so, it paves the way for a new era of growth, prosperity, cultural richness and more sporting success.