Arsenal's Champions League final defeat by Paris Saint-Germain attracted more than 16.2 million views on illegal streams in the UK after not being made free to air, according to analysis by Gaming Compliance International (GCI) for the Guardian. The final was watched legally on TNT Sports and HBO Max by over 7 million people.
Illegal Viewing Numbers
GCI traced 16.2 million illegal stream views of longer than 90 seconds to 3.7 million unique IP addresses. The actual number of illegal viewers is likely higher, as multiple viewers may share a stream, and some users accessed multiple streams due to technical issues or forced refreshes from advertising.
Free-to-Air Controversy
TNT Sports sparked a political row by not making the final free-to-air for the first time since the Champions League rebrand in 1992. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer wrote to the broadcaster urging reconsideration. TNT was satisfied with its 7 million viewers and 25.6% audience share, but the large illegal audience poses a long-term concern for broadcasters and rights holders like UEFA and the Premier League.
The absence of free-to-air coverage likely contributed to the high illegal viewership. In 2022, BT Sport streamed the final between Liverpool and Real Madrid for free on YouTube, reaching a peak audience of 12.6 million.
Link to Unlicensed Gambling
The analysis highlights a strong overlap between illegal streaming and unregulated gambling. GCI reported that 89% of adverts on illegal streams of the final were for gambling brands not licensed in the UK. GCI president Ismail Vali stated: "A dark nexus has existed between illegal streaming and unregulated gambling since the pandemic. Now, illegal streaming has become part of a new arms race for illegal gambling, using 'free sports streaming' as a selling point."
Broadcaster Response
TNT stood by its decision to keep the final on subscription channels, with monthly packages starting at £4.99. Industry sources noted that viewership could have been higher if UEFA had not moved the kick-off from 9pm to 6pm to accommodate fans in Budapest. TNT's viewing figures rose from 4.5 million for PSG's 5-0 win over Inter last year, thanks to the presence of an English club, but declined in France due to the earlier time.
TNT reported that over 9.2 million people watched at least one of the three UEFA men's finals, including 3.5 million for Aston Villa's Europa League win and 2.7 million for Crystal Palace's Conference League triumph. Average European football audience was up 5% from last season.
Prime Minister Starmer, an Arsenal fan, made a second public plea for free access to the final in a joint statement with the Football Supporters' Association. TNT had made the past two finals free on discovery+, and previous rights holder BT Sport streamed them free on YouTube. Before BT Sport, Champions League finals were live on ITV from 1992 to 2003, then jointly with Sky Sports until 2015.
