Euroleague Turns to Sportian to Fight Broadcast Piracy

Euroleague Basketball has appointed Sportian, the sports technology business co-owned by Globant and LaLiga to strengthen its global anti-piracy efforts, signalling a firm stance on protecting the value of its broadcast rights in an increasingly fragmented digital media landscape. The move reflects growing concern across the sports industry that illegal streaming continues to undermine rights revenues and weaken relationships with broadcast partners.

Through the partnership, Sportian will deploy its AI-driven technology to detect and facilitate the removal of unauthorised Euroleague streams across websites, IPTV services and social platforms. The system operates in near real time, allowing rapid intervention during live matches, when piracy has the greatest commercial impact.

For rights holders, piracy is no longer viewed as a peripheral issue. It represents a direct threat to the sustainability of media rights models, particularly as audiences shift towards digital consumption. In the UK and across Europe, leagues and federations are under increasing pressure to demonstrate that they can protect exclusivity for broadcasters who invest heavily in premium sport content

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Sportian’s use of machine learning allows for large-scale monitoring that would be impossible through manual processes alone. This approach reflects a wider trend in sports technology, where automation and AI are being adopted to manage risks that grow in line with digital distribution.

Euroleague’s decision to invest in specialist anti-piracy infrastructure also sends a message to broadcasters and commercial partners that content protection is a strategic priority. Strong enforcement frameworks are now seen as an essential component of future media rights negotiations, rather than an optional safeguard.

For the wider UK sports tech ecosystem, the partnership highlights how demand is growing for solutions that protect intellectual property and commercial value. As digital consumption accelerates, technology providers offering scalable, intelligent enforcement tools are becoming increasingly important to the sports media supply chain.