Justice Department seizes 400 sites streaming World Cup illegally

The Justice Department announced the seizure of nearly 400 websites that were illegally streaming FIFA World Cup matches in violation of U.S. copyright law, disrupting international networks that profit from the tournament’s global popularity and unauthorized broadcasts.

The operation, dubbed Operation Offsides and led by the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, targeted domains broadcasting live 2026 World Cup matches without authorization. Seizure warrants were filed in the Eastern District of Virginia, where HSI special agents confirmed the domains were actively streaming matches as they were being played and first broadcast, the Justice Department said.

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said the action reflects both the department’s commitment to intellectual property rights and the United States’ responsibilities as a host nation for the tournament. The World Cup is being held across multiple cities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The seized domains were identified with assistance from FIFA, which holds exclusive rights to sanction and stage the 2026 tournament. Additional supporting information was provided by beIN Media Group, NBC Universal, the Motion Picture Association’s Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Warner Brothers, according to the department.

Ivan J. Arvelo, director of the National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, said the operation relied on strong partnerships with law enforcement and the private sector to identify and shut down the illegal sites. Officials also warned that illegal streaming sites pose risks beyond copyright theft — including exposure to malware and insecure connections that can compromise personal and financial data, said Eric Weindorf, special agent in charge of the HSI Washington Field Office.

The U.S. action was part of a coordinated international effort through the International Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Network of U.S. prosecutors. Servers and domains linked to illegal World Cup streaming were targeted in Peru and Bulgaria, described as known centers of online piracy activity. Additional disruptions took place in Croatia, Romania, Poland and Colombia. U.S. authorities also provided investigative leads to help identify domains associated with illegal World Cup streaming, the Justice Department said.

Senior officials from the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, along with an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, are assisting the operation. The Justice Department’s ICHIP prosecutors based in São Paulo, Brazil, and Bucharest, Romania, as well as the ICHIP for Internet-Based Fraud and Public Health in Washington, D.C., also provided support. CCIPS has secured convictions of more than 180 cybercriminals and intellectual property criminals since 2020 and court orders for the return of more than $350 million in victim funds.