The crusade to end piracy by the Spanish football association has generated an open judicial conflict between LaLiga and US-based cybersecurity company Cloudflare. LaLiga argues that more than 50% of pirate IPs illegally distributing LaLiga content are protected by Cloudflare, also accusing Google and VPN services of “facilitating piracy.” Meanwhile, Cloudflare defends that LaLiga is blocking access to numerous legitimate websites due to the football association blocking IP addresses en masse.
Armed with a judicial ruling from December 2024, LaLiga has instructed internet service providers (ISPs) to implement dynamic blocks on IP addresses linked to unauthorized streams. However, Cloudflare argues that collateral damage is a reality, with many of its clients experiencing outages during peak match times.
Websites that use Cloudflare range from small businesses to internet giants such as GitHub and ChatGPT, affecting users of these websites, as data from monitoring platforms like Downdetector indicated a surge in disruptions coinciding with the match’s kickoff. In a similar piracy case, the Italian national platform responsible for blocking websites sparked controversy in 2024 when it mistakenly blocked Google Drive.
Cloudflare goes to court
In response to these disruptions, Cloudflare has filed a motion to annul the court ruling that empowers LaLiga to enforce these blocks. The company asserts that LaLiga obtained the ruling without consulting cloud service providers, thereby overlooking the potential harm to third parties and the public interest. Another argument by the cybersecurity business is that LaLiga is posing a clear threat to an open internet.
Cloudflare contends that LaLiga’s approach is both clumsy and ineffective, affecting unlawful users and businesses. “As a long-standing advocate for an open internet, Cloudflare provides security and reliability services that protect millions of websites from cyberattacks and bolster the internet’s infrastructure.” Cloudflare also asserts that it routinely collaborates with rights holders to help resolve issues like illegal streaming; however, it says that “LaLiga has left Cloudflare no choice but to pursue this legal avenue.”
“Instead of addressing Spanish users’ concerns about over-blocking of content, LaLiga has attempted to deflect attention with unfounded accusations against Cloudflare while intensifying its illegal blocking practices,” Cloudflare states. Cloudflare hopes this court action will help prevent future indiscriminate blocking measures and clarify that rights holders cannot prioritize their commercial interests over the fundamental right of millions of consumers to access an open internet,” the company underscores.
LaLiga fights back
LaLiga, led by President Javier Tebas, has defended its actions, denying any indiscriminate blocking of IP addresses and accusing Cloudflare of enabling several crimes.
“Cloudflare has facilitated piracy by knowingly protecting criminal organizations for profit. Through this conduct, Cloudflare is actively enabling illegal activities such as human trafficking, prostitution, pornography, counterfeiting, fraud, and scams, among other things,” LaLiga alleges.
The organization maintains that the targeted IPs are verified sources of illegal content distribution.
“It’s important to emphasize that this is not a broad or indiscriminate block. LaLiga is absolutely certain and has proof that these IPs are being used to distribute illegal content alongside legitimate material,” LaLiga concludes.
