A report to be issued by the World Trade Organisation is to name the Saudi government as responsible for pirate TV channel beoutQ.
The broadcaster is responsible for the pirating of a string of top flight sports events including Champions League, Bundesliga, Premier League, Formula 1 and NFL.
The Guardian, which first reported the story says the report will confirm the Saudi government itself is behind beoutQ, which has been broadcasting since 2017. It deals a potential blow to Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is in the process of a takeover of Premier League club Newcastle United.
The Arabsat-delivered channel has been the subject of a number of complaints by fellow broadcasters including Bein Sports and Sky.
The WTO’s interest is believed to have been sparked by complaints by the Premier League, Fifa, La Liga, and Uefa who hired international legal counsel to investigate the matter, but were unable to find anyone to represent them locally.