NYON – The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has officially joined the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE), the world’s leading content protection coalition dedicated to combating digital piracy. UEFA becomes the first exclusive sports rights-holder to join ACE, while contributing to a broader industry-wide effort to safeguard the value of creative and sporting content worldwide.
UEFA will play an active role in ACE’s Live Tier, which enhances and coordinates ACE’s efforts to target sports piracy operations and, working with law enforcement and other partners, pursues actions that dismantle illegal operations worldwide. It also reinforces the position of UEFA and UC3 – the entity overseeing the commercialisation of the rights of UEFA’s club competitions – at the forefront of global anti-piracy action.
ACE, the premier global alliance against digital piracy led by the Motion Picture Association (MPA), brings together over 50 major entertainment companies and studios in a coordinated bid to combat piracy that threatens the integrity of the digital ecosystem.
“UEFA joining ACE represents a landmark moment in our global content protection strategy,” said Guy-Laurent Epstein, Executive Director of Marketing at UEFA. “This partnership allows us to expand our enforcement capabilities, deepen our existing collaboration with industry leaders and leverage ACE’s proven capabilities to disrupt illegal services.”
“With UEFA joining the world’s largest anti-piracy coalition, we are strengthening our fight to detect, deter, and dismantle online piracy everywhere,” said Charles Rivkin, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association and Chairman of ACE. “UEFA’s membership bolsters ACE’s ability to defend sports content from nefarious players in real time – and amplifies the reach of our efforts to protect football fans and broadcasters across the globe.”
Members of the ACE Live Tier benefit from sharing the Alliance’s unmatched real-time intelligence, global reach, policy advocacy and partnerships with private sector and law enforcement allies. Building upon ACE’s proven toolkit to dismantle piracy networks, the Live Tier features global hubs, processes and technology dedicated to addressing the immediacy of gameday piracy.
UEFA and UC3 remain deeply committed to safeguarding the interests of their family of broadcast partners. This commitment is essential, recognising that media rights revenues across UEFA competitions underpin the sustainability of football at both professional and grassroots levels, while supporting development initiatives throughout the wider European football ecosystem.
About The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment
The Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE) is the world’s leading coalition dedicated to protecting the legal creative market and reducing digital piracy. Driven by a comprehensive approach to addressing piracy through criminal referrals, civil litigation, and cease-and-desist operations, ACE has achieved many successful global enforcement actions against illegal streaming services and unauthorized content sources and their operators. Drawing upon the collective expertise and resources of more than 50 media and entertainment companies around the world—including sports channels and associations—and reinforced by the Motion Picture Association’s content protection operations, ACE protects the creativity and innovation that drives the global growth of core copyright and entertainment industries. The current governing board members for ACE are Amazon, Apple TV, Netflix, Paramount Global, Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, The Walt Disney Studios, and Warner Bros. Discovery. Charles Rivkin is Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association and Chairman of ACE.
About UEFA
UEFA is the governing body of European football and a not-for-profit organisation which supports and ensures the world’s most popular sport continues to thrive at all levels across its 55 member associations. As part of its commitment, UEFA invests 97.5% of its revenue in football-related activities, projects and initiatives that ensure the continued development of the men’s and women’s professional game as well as youth, grassroots and futsal.
Media Contact – ACE
Pamela Corante
pamela_corante@motionpictures.org
Media Contact – UEFA
UEFA Media & Public Relations
