The Paris Judicial Court has ruled in favour of Canal+ ordering the blocking of 203 domain names associated with illegal sports streaming sites by five VPN providers.
Under the ruling, NordVPN, Cyberghost, Surfshark, ExpressVPN, and Proton are now required to block access to 203 domain names used to illegally stream UEFA Champions League, Premier League, and Top 14 matches. Canal+ holds the exclusive broadcasting rights to the three competitions in France.
Canal+ welcomed the decision, which it said sends a strong message regarding the responsibility of VPN providers, recognising them for the first time as “technical intermediaries” in the illegal broadcasting of sports content.
“The group is proud to have initiated this major step forward in the fight against sports piracy in France and beyond, setting a legal precedent”.
The decision, a legal first, follows previous court orders obtained in 2022 targeting illegal streaming sites via Internet Service Providers, in 2024 via alternative DNS providers, and in 2025 via CDN and proxy services, this new ruling against VPNs is fully aligned with the group’s strategy to hold all types of technical intermediaries accountable in the battle against audiovisual piracy.
Canal says protecting its content remains a top priority.
