Football fans have taken to social media to react to the news that popular streaming website Hesgoal has been banished by United States law enforcement authorities.
Piracy is an issue prevalent in sport with sites such as Hesgoal attracting "millions" of monthly visitors looking to stream live content for free. That is not an option today. Instead, visitors are welcomed by a seizure banner, displaying a stern warning of criminal prosecution to those attempting to access the homepage.
It reads: “This domain name has been seized by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) pursuant to a warrant issued by the United States District Court for the District of Maryland under the authority of inter alia, Title 18, United States Code, section 2323. It is unlawful to reproduce or distribute copyrighted material including movies, music, software, or games without authorization. Individuals who do so risk criminal prosecution. First time offenders convicted of a criminal copyright violation face up to five years in prison, fines, restitution, and forfeiture."
The domain being seized is undoubtedly a major blow to the sites, while it comes as a positive sign for broadcasters such as BT and Sky Sports who have railed against illegal broadcasting.
Supporters were quick to tweet their shock at being unable to tune into sporting action across the weekend. A first wrote: "Hesgoal was seized by Homeland Security today."
While another said: "As a frequent member of Hesgoal loyal. Today is a sad day." And a third added: "Whoever runs or owns hesgoal is literally risking it all for the world to be able to watch games for free. Respect."
Hesgoal was previously forced to pull the plug on their streaming of the English Premier League in March, with the owner stating that they need to respect the people who have the official rights to show the games. However until today you could still access Scottish Premiership action among others from across the world.
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