French and Spanish broadcasting bodies have filed an official complaint to the International Football Federation "FIFA" regarding its decision to include "ExpressVPN" as an official sponsor for the 2026 World Cup.
The quarter-final round of the 2026 World Cup kicks off this Thursday evening with an exciting match between France and Morocco, while Spain plays against Belgium tomorrow Friday.
ExpressVPN, a virtual private network service that protects user privacy on the internet, was announced as an official partner of the World Cup before the start of the tournament, and it appeared on billboards during the matches.
However, the president of the Spanish League Association, Javier Tebas, who led the campaign to suppress illegal broadcasting of football in Spain, is not satisfied with the promotion of a VPN service in the World Cup because its use may make it difficult for authorities to track people who broadcast matches illegally, according to the English newspaper "Metro".
Tebas claimed last year that Spanish League clubs lose up to 700 million euros (597 million pounds sterling) in revenues due to illegal broadcasting of football matches.
In a letter seen by the French newspaper "L'Equipe", Tebas told FIFA President Gianni Infantino that promoting ExpressVPN "sends a disastrous message to the entire football ecosystem".
Tebas wrote in his letter: "I am writing to you on behalf of the Spanish League Association to file an official complaint regarding the recent announcement of the sponsorship agreement concluded between FIFA and ExpressVPN".
The Spanish League Association believes that this agreement clearly conflicts with the principles of protecting the audio and visual rights of football that should govern the actions of the world football governing body.
Tebas pointed out that FIFA signing a partnership with a company whose services effectively facilitate the piracy of sports content sends a disastrous message to the entire football system and endangers ongoing legal procedures.
The Spanish Football League Association (La Liga), beIN Sports France channel, +Canal channel, and other sports organizations have filed lawsuits against ExpressVPN in several countries.
At the same time, the Association for the Protection of Sports Programs (APPS), which includes all major sports channels in France, wrote a letter to Infantino expressing "deep concern" about the FIFA sponsorship agreement.
The letter also stated: "Given FIFA's role and responsibilities as the governing body of football in the world, we believe that there is a need for special vigilance to ensure that these partnerships are fully consistent with the broader goal of preserving the integrity, sustainability, and value of sports competitions, as well as their audio-visual exploitation".
Last year, the major French channel +Canal won a ruling from the judicial court in Paris ordering five VPN service providers, including ExpressVPN, to block 203 domain names associated with illegal sports broadcasting sites.
In response to the complaints, FIFA stated in a statement to L'Equipe newspaper: "In accordance with regulations and best market practices, FIFA conducts a thorough examination and comprehensive evaluation before signing any new commercial partnership. It has carefully studied the potential implications of the sponsorship agreement and taken steps to ensure that it does not undermine the efforts of rights holders or stakeholders".
In a message directed to its customers, ExpressVPN warned against using its service in "illegal activities".
