Spanish soccer’s top flight, LaLiga, has announced an expansion of its partnership with technology giant Google as it intensifies efforts to combat audiovisual piracy and protect the value of its media rights.
The two organizations collaborated throughout the 2025-26 season to address the growing threat posed by illegal streaming. According to LaLiga, that cooperation led to a “very significant reduction” in piracy incidents occurring through Google platforms and Google-linked services.
Under the renewed agreement, Google has optimized its piracy reporting tools and services used by LaLiga, improving the efficiency of communication between the parties and accelerating the handling of infringement complaints.
“LaLiga remains firmly committed to the fight against piracy,” said LaLiga president Javier Tebas. “Collaboration is essential to putting an end to this scourge, and being able to count on major players such as Google strengthens us in our purpose.
“Now, together with Google, we are becoming increasingly effective in defending football, intellectual property, the entertainment sector, and the integrity of fans.”
Lino Cattaruzzi, president of Google Iberia, emphasized that protecting intellectual property remains a fundamental priority for the company.
“For Google, respect for intellectual property rights and the provision of a safe digital environment are fundamental pillars,” Cattaruzzi said. “That is why we have multiple mechanisms in place to prevent the misuse of our tools by third parties, and we maintain ongoing investment in technology to actively combat piracy.
“This close collaboration with LaLiga demonstrates that, through proactive communication and the proper use of our reporting channels across our products, it is possible to provide content creators with highly effective, agile, and transparent technical solutions that bring security to the entertainment sector.”
Piracy fight at the heart of LaLiga’s strategy
Combating piracy has become a cornerstone of LaLiga’s media rights strategy.
When the league renewed its domestic broadcasting agreement with Telefonica in November, Tebas highlighted LaLiga’s resilience at a time when several sports properties have experienced declining media valuations.
“At a time when many leagues are experiencing declining media values, LaLiga’s continued growth and record highs are especially significant,” Tebas said at the time. “This result reflects the strength of our product and the trust of broadcasters, largely driven by our committed fight against piracy, which has helped increase operators’ user bases.”
VPN crackdown sets a precedent
LaLiga has also pursued legal action against companies it believes facilitate illegal streaming.
In February, LaLiga and Telefonica secured a court order against VPN providers NordVPN and ProtonVPN. The ruling, issued by the Commercial Court No. 1 of Cordoba, required the companies to take steps to block IP addresses within Spain that use their services to pirate LaLiga broadcasts.
The court classified VPN providers as “technological intermediaries” under the European Union’s Digital Services Act, making them responsible for helping prevent piracy-related infringements.
In practice, the decision obliges VPN operators to cooperate with LaLiga and Telefonica in identifying users found to be illegally accessing pirated content and to block those IP addresses from their services in Spain.
Crucially, the order is dynamic, meaning updated lists of infringing IP addresses can continually be added as new violations are detected. Those affected by the measures will not have the right to appeal the blocking orders.