Artificial intelligence, implacable enemy of soccer mafias

For decades, bars have been one of the great alternatives to the unique experience of living a live football match. They have earned it for its social component, the possibility of exchanging impressions with others while leafing through a newspaper and enjoying a good coffee or a beer and, above all, the incentive of celebrating goals and victories -or digesting the defeats- in company.

Watching football at the bar is, for many, a tradition that they don’t want to skip. Of course, not everything goes, and the quality of the broadcasts is key. The fans who come to these venues hope to enjoy the LaLiga Santander and LaLiga SmartBank matches without cuts or interruptions, and with a clear conscience knowing that they are not collaborating with the mafias that profit from piracy and that harm not only to all cultural sector but to the whole society in general.

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The legal battle against piracy is being waged in bars, but also in the rest of the HORECA channel establishments (hotels, restaurants and cafeterias) which, in an exercise of unfair competition, decide to broadcast football fraudulently. One of the great purposes of LaLiga is, precisely, to combat the latter.

A transversal work, which involves two of its subsidiaries such as LaLiga Tech and LaLiga Servicios Digitales and departments such as Integrity and Legal, among others. Since last December 29, Spain finally has a legal framework, which places it “at the forefront of the fight against piracy”, in the words of the director of operations of LaLiga Content Protection – the subsidiary company of LaLiga Tech dedicated to the protection of content from LaLiga and third parties around the world–, Emilio Fernández del Castillo.

“Piracy decreases in those places where they feel more controlled and, therefore, less unpunished”

Jaime Plaza, director of LaLiga Digital Services

Not surprisingly, beyond LaLiga’s contribution to combating football piracy, thanks to the selfless transfer of its Lumière artificial intelligence tool to the Ministry of Culture, it is also helping to reduce the percentage of access to illegal content – ​​from music, films and series to videogames, books and scores– in Spain. Specifically, and according to data from the Observatory of piracy and digital content consumption habits, the decrease was 19% in 2020.

This goal by the squad against piracy occurs within the framework of “an important game”, as the general director of LaLiga Tech, Miguel Ángel Leal, admits. In this duel against piracy, the technological subsidiary of LaLiga is achieving a rate of removal of illegal content “often above 90%”. It is a clear victory. The objective is to continue winning in all scenarios such as in bars that broadcast football without the corresponding license.

A common front against pirate football in the HORECA channel

The experience acquired in its three years of operation has allowed LaLiga Servicios Digitales to lead a fight that it shares with other players in the sector such as Mediapro, distributor of the audiovisual rights of LaLiga Santander and LaLiga SmartBank in restaurants, hotels and cafeterias. It is precisely in the HORECA channel where “the knowledge” resides which, according to its director, Jaime Plaza, “makes it possible to quickly identify a phenomenon that is not homogeneous, but that in the last three seasons has been reduced by nearly one 70%”, thanks to the capacity to visit and validate around 50,000 establishments per year.

All this thanks to the work of a team that exceeds a hundred people and that, day after day, verifies thousands of premises throughout the country. Because, unfortunately, as confirmed by LaLiga Servicios Digitales, no one ‒“from the tavern in the most remote town to the sports bar with the most screens in a large capital”‒ is exempt from piracy: “The only verifiable pattern is that it decreases in those places where they feel more controlled and, therefore, less unpunished”.

From the collection and interpretation of data to ‘georouting’

The work methodology of the hundred verifiers of LaLiga Servicios Digitales is based on their division throughout the national geography into one hundred plots and, more importantly, on the interpretation of a constantly updated database. “That’s where our strength lies,” adds Plaza. In this way, and as is the case with the blocking of pirate websites and IP addresses, artificial intelligence has also become the best ally to eradicate possible malpractice by bars and restaurants when it comes to broadcasting football.

Based on the data and infractions collected by the verifiers in each of the hundred plots and other variables (such as the audience data of each party distributed “geographically”, the population density and the concentration of premises) , an algorithm generates a series of patterns that allow planning the routes of each inspector and “redirecting” them based on the needs and movements that are detected. “We also have defined high-density clubs and parties, both at the national and regional levels. The parcelling model gives us flexibility, allowing us to reinforce the network of verifiers at certain times, for example, in ElClásico,” explains Plaza.

“Fans can upload their tickets at Futbar venues and, in this way, obtain economic reimbursements, both customers and establishments”

Carlos Pallarés, director of Commercial Communication for HORECA clients of Mediapro

It is precisely this live and constantly evolving methodology that allows LaLiga to be increasingly effective in detecting this type of offence. A key moment for this is “during the first half of each season”. It is then that they must ensure that correct coverage is produced and determine in which areas “there is more potential” for them to be committed “in order to stop that signal” and “inform them that they must stop illegal broadcasts or that they regularize their situation if they want to broadcast our matches.”

This informative process takes place once the inspection is completed. During their activity, the verifiers do not interrupt the activity of the premises. “They simply go to the bar, check the signal, check the premises and in case that irregularity is being committed, collect the evidence, and leave.” Immediately afterwards, it is the regularization area of ​​LaLiga Servicios Digitales that is in charge of contacting the manager of the business by letter and by phone to inform him that he is violating intellectual property rights.

When the picaresque ends up being very expensive

Currently, LaLiga has a total of 615 convictions against establishments that issued illegally, for only 36 acquittals, with at least another 270 trials being forthcoming. On the other hand, more than 330 establishments have resorted to conciliation with the lawsuits filed by LaLiga’s legal services.

The illicit broadcast of football matches is typified as a crime of audiovisual piracy that is punishable by articles 270.1 and 286.4 of the Penal Code and its violation can lead to prison sentences and tens of thousands of euros in fines. “I don’t know if it’s due to ignorance, but the implications of carrying out this activity are quite serious,” concludes Plaza.

Futbar: the APP to find authorized bars with numerous advantages

The LaLiga Servicios Digitales team has the collaboration of Mediapro, which also denounces the negative effects of fraudulent broadcasting in these establishments. “The most important thing”, highlights the Marketing Manager of LaLigaTV Bar, Carlos Pallarés, is that these activities allow the “big networks” that are manufacturing and distributing illegal decoders to profit. In addition, this practice “supposes unfair competition for the other bars that are paying to have football.”

In their eagerness to contribute to the eradication of irregular broadcasts, the distributor of audiovisual rights for LaLiga in catering establishments has developed the Futbar application, which seeks to help the owner of the establishment to get the most out of football in his and also to educate fans so that they can enjoy the atmosphere and the experience of watching football only in official bars that broadcast the LaLigaTV Bar signal.

They make it easy for the fan. To find out if the establishment where you are watching football (regardless of whether it is a restaurant, an inn, a café or a hotel) is legally broadcasting the game, just take a look at the screen. There you will find the signal of the LaLigaTV Bar channel, along with a fly, a badge with a B (with slight variations in design and typography depending on the operator) that ensure that this place has a “bar” license.

That was the main objective of Futbar, to be an application with which fans could “locate places where they could watch football in a stable and quality way”, explains Pallarés. However, it has ended up becoming a “loyalty” program that has been adding initiatives “both for the fans themselves and for the premises with a legal license”, which it intends to help make their premises profitable, he adds.

In addition to being able to check the nearest bars where the LaLigaTV Bar signal is legally broadcast and where other fans from the same club meet, Futbar users can also benefit from different advantages and prizes that can range from free drinks, reimbursements for tickets scanned and even balls and signed shirts. The objective is none other than to encourage consumption in legal bars so that they can “make the most of the service” by contracting football through LaLigaTV Bar.

In this way, these premises become available in an app through which they can share advantages and promotions of their establishments, in addition to opening the door to beneficial commercial actions with brands related to the sector. “Fans can upload their tickets at Futbar venues and, in this way, obtain economic reimbursements, both for customers and establishments.” According to data from Mediapro, the average ticket amounts to “about 13 euros”, depending on the type of venue.

“More than 40% of customers who watch football at the bar also have a particular subscription. Therefore, it is not just watching the game, but football at the bar is a social issue”

Carlos Pallarés, director of Commercial Communication for HORECA clients of Mediapro

Another benefit for the owners is the time redistribution of the parties, which ensures the transit of customers distributed in various slots throughout the weekend. “Only with the main LaLiga Santander clubs is it already profitable for a bar to hire football,” adds Pallarés, who does not consider that the new post-pandemic habits will end the general habit of going down to the bar to watch the game.

“According to our data, more than 40% of customers who watch football at the bar also have a residential subscription. Therefore, it’s not just about watching the match, but the fan who watches football in the bar is also looking for an atmosphere and socializing”, he concludes. It is one of those old customs that neither time, nor circumstances, nor the almighty social networks have managed to bury, because few things connect us so much with our loved ones -and help us to disconnect from the rest- as the fact of getting together to see the football in the bar