World Rugby chief executive Alan Gilpin says tournament organisers are “well prepared” to deal with any protests or safety threats at the World Cup in France.
More than 600,000 international visitors – a World Cup record and 50 per cent more than for Japan 2019 – are expected to attend the event in September and October.
Ticket sales currently stand at almost 2.5million as the biggest Rugby World Cup tournament in its 36-year history prepares to take centre stage.
Protests across France over pension reforms earlier this month saw almost 300 people arrested and more than 100 police officers injured.
Football’s European governing body UEFA, meanwhile, brought in new measures to improve safeguards for fans attending finals in the wake of last season’s Champions League fiasco.
UEFA drew on recommendations from an independent review panel into chaotic scenes at the Stade de France in Paris which saw Liverpool supporters suffer serious congestion problems and over-zealous policing.
And Just Stop Oil protestors invaded the pitch during Saturday’s Gallagher Premiership final at Twickenham, throwing orange paint powder on to the field.
The World Cup kicks off at the Stade de France on September 8 with a blockbuster opener between France and New Zealand, launching a 48-match schedule involving 20 countries.
“Like every major event, we are planning all the time for such a wide range of different scenarios, and protests of any nature are certainly part of that,” said Gilpin, speaking with 100 days to go before the tournament starts.
“Of course, it is an area of challenging concern, but it is an area we are planning for, and like all of those scenarios we are working incredibly closely with the authorities in the various host cities.
“While I am sure, as there is in every major event and every RWC, there will be incidents we need to deal with, I think we will be well prepared for that.
“There are lessons to learn, clearly, from incidents like at the Stade de France and the Champions League final last year. There has been an enormous amount of debate around that.
“We are confident in those plans, but like any time we are talking about safety, we are not complacent and there is a huge amount of work that has been done and that will continue throughout the next 100 days and the tournament.
“A Rugby World Cup over seven weekends, 48 matches in nine cities is a big undertaking, so we are pretty relentless about the planning from a safety perspective.
“We can reassure rugby fans that are travelling to France, or that will be in France for the tournament, that their safety along with the teams and the players are our top priority. The French government, the cities are all part of that effort.”
Events to mark the 100 days landmark include the Webb Ellis Cup being delivered to France by 2019 South Africa World Cup winner Tendai Mtawarira, an unveiling of tournament medals made from recycled phones donated by fans and community rugby clubs and a spectacular light show set to transform the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
And Gilpin believes the World Cup’s 10th staging promises to be the most open tournament yet.
“We have seen in the (world) rankings, it has never been so competitive,” he added.
“On any given day, there are six or seven teams that can beat each other. We’ve got more uncertainty about our World Cup champions than ever before. That all leads into the excitement we are seeing.
“Our message is that we are in great shape. From our perspective, never has a country been so excited to host a Rugby World Cup – the levels of engagement are fantastic – and never has a country been so ready to host a Rugby World Cup.
“We know from ticket purchasing that more than 600,000 international fans will be welcomed to France, which is a record for any rugby event.
“The organisers have achieved, and will achieve, record ticket sales for RWC, selling out 2.5million tickets. It has been the hottest ticket for any rugby event to date.”
Jamaica’s young Reggae Girlz gave head coach Hugh Bradford something to smile about, as they concluded their failed Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship campaign on a high with a 4-1 beating of Panama, at the Felix Sanchez Stadium in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic on Tuesday.
Natoya Atkinson (16th), Davia Richards (32nd), Maya Raghunandanan (37th) and Amelia Van Zanten (74th) were on target for the Bradford’s side, while Meredith Rosas, got Panama’s consolation in the 79th minute.
With the win, the Girlz ended Group A in third on three points scoring four goals and conceding nine, behind United States and Canada, to whom they suffered identical 0-4 defeats. Panama finished at the foot of the standing without a point.
It was a dominant performance by the Girlz, who for the first time in the tournament played with some degree of freedom and bossed possession throughout.
In fact, they were so fluent in attack, particularly in the first half, to the point where they held a high line, got significant numbers forward and camped out in Panama's quarters.
After firing a few warning shots, the Girlz inevitably broke the deadlock when Atkinson fired home from close range, after Destiny Powell’s initial effort came back off the crossbar.
Though they continued to apply consistent pressure, the Girlz had to wait until minutes past the half-hour mark to double their lead. Richards converted from the 12-yard spot, after Mireilis Rojas was adjudged to have handled the ball inside the 18-yard box on the VAR review.
Panama was not without hope, as they tried to play their game and even stringed a few good build ups together to remind the Jamaicans of their potential but couldn’t get anything on frame.
However, the Jamaicans pushed further ahead through Raghunandanan, who pounced on loose ball and lashed a one-time effort from a distance past Alejandra Garay, in goal for Panama, to make it 3-0 at the break.
Panama was never expected to overturn the deficit, but they were certainly more purposeful on the resumption with Sherline King forcing a fingertip save from Jamaica’s goalkeeper Katie Oakley in the 58th minute.
The Central Americans grew in confidence in the attacking third as the game progressed, especially as the young Reggae Girlz briefly became complacent and overconfident.
When they regained composure, the Jamaicans added a fourth courtesy of Van Zanten from the penalty spot, after the fleet-footed Shaneil Buckley was taken out by Garay inside the danger area.
But Panama responded shortly after with a 12-yard conversion of their own. Substitute Andrene Smith felled Aaliyah Gil in the 18-yard box, shortly after entering the pitch and Rosas was cool, calm and collected in firing past Oakley.
The Jamaicans could have added to their tally in the latter stages, but lacked composure in the final third, while it took some brilliance from Oakley to deny Gil, from a distance, four minutes from time.
Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild caused the first big shock of the French Open, knocking out second seed Daniil Medvedev in five sets.
In a now wide open men’s bottom half, there were wins for last year’s finalist Casper Ruud, young Dane Holger Rune and Alexander Zverev.
Defending women’s champion Iga Swiatek pulled away after a tricky start to open her campaign with a 6-4 6-0 win over Cristina Bucsa.
Picture of the dayStat of the dayShot of the dayMatch of the day
A five-hour-10-minute epic played out on Court Eight. To add to the drama, Miomir Kecmanovic demanded to see the supervisor after being given a warning when he hit a ball back that had flown over from another court.
Carrot tops
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There is no missing Jannik Sinner’s fan club at Roland Garros this year. The ‘Carota Boys’ have been inspired by their favourite player’s penchant for a mid-match carrot snack. “I have orange hair, and I used to eat a lot of carrots in Vienna,” said Sinner. “It’s a good nickname.”
Venus returns
Venus Williams turns 43 in a couple of weeks but she is not yet ready to follow sister Serena into retirement. The American will play her first tournament since January on grass in the Netherlands, and watch out for her popping up in Birmingham, too. Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, meanwhile, will play in Eastbourne.
Fallen seeds
Men: Daniil Medvedev (2), Miomir Kecmanovic (31)
Women: Barbora Krejcikova (13), Victoria Azarenka (18), Anhelina Kalinina (25), Sorana Cirstea (30), Marie Bouzkova (31), Shelby Rogers (32)
Who’s up next?
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Cameron Norrie will take on the crowd and a French opponent for the second match in a row on Suzanne Lenglen, this time former top-10 player Lucas Pouille.
Novak Djokovic plays the night match on Philippe Chatrier against Marton Fucsovics, with Carlos Alcaraz facing Taro Daniel in the last contest of the day session.
Caroline Garcia carries French hopes against Anna Blinkova while third seed Jessica Pegula meets the dangerous Camila Giorgi.
The Nashville Predators have suddenly made a change at coach, firing John Hynes on Tuesday and reportedly replacing him with Andrew Brunette.
The Predators announced Hynes' firing, as well as assistant coach Dan Lambert, and multiple media outlets are reporting Brunette will take over.
Hynes, 48, spent part of the last four seasons with the Predators, replacing Peter Laviolette in 2019-20 and helping the team to the playoffs the first three years.
Each of those playoff trips ended with first-round exits, however, and Nashville missed the playoffs this season for the first time since 2013-14.
"John Hynes is a good man and a good hockey coach," incoming general manager Barry Trotz said. "He did an outstanding job after the trade deadline with our team, especially with our young players, and he is a well-prepared, hard-working coach who will continue to grow in the NHL. After our year-end meetings and some additional evaluation, it was time to change the voice and time to go in a different direction."
Brunette’s only previous head coaching experience came in 2021-22, when he served as interim head coach of the Florida Panthers following the resignation of Joel Quenneville.
The 49-year-old led the Panthers to a 51-18-6 record and the Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL’s top regular-season club, but after the team was swept in the second round of the playoffs by the Tampa Bay Lightning, GM Bill Zito decided to hire Paul Maurice as the full-time coach.
Brunette spent this past season as an associate coach for a New Jersey Devils team that advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2011-12.
A 16-year NHL veteran as a player, Brunette will be Nashville's fourth coach in franchise history and serve under Trotz, who will take over when longtime GM David Poile retires in July.
Poile has been the only GM in franchise history, while Trotz served as the club’s first coach, working behind the bench from 1998-2014.
Brunette played under Trotz for the 1998-99 expansion Predators, and scored the franchise’s first goal.
Brunette, who made his NHL debut in 1995-96, scored 268 goals and registered 733 points in 1,110 career games before retiring in 2011-12.
Manchester United forward Anthony Martial has been ruled out of Saturday’s FA Cup final against Manchester City due to a hamstring injury.
Martial picked up the problem in United’s final Premier League game of the season after stepping off the bench on Sunday against Fulham and scans have revealed the full extent of the damage.
United said in a statement: “Anthony Martial is out of Saturday’s Emirates FA Cup final against Manchester City due to injury.
“The France international strained his hamstring towards the end of Sunday’s 2-1 win against Fulham at Old Trafford.
“Assessments have since revealed a muscle tear that rules the 27-year-old out of the Wembley showdown.”
Martial missed United’s first two Premier League games this season due to a hamstring problem, while other small injuries since have restricted him to 29 appearances in all competitions in which he has scored nine goals.
Only 11 of his 21 league appearances this season have been in the starting line-up, but he had been hoping to be in contention to start at Wembley against City, who are looking to complete a domestic treble.
The former Lyon winger, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Sevilla, joined United from Monaco for £36million in 2015 and has made almost 200 league appearances for the club in total.
Alun Wyn Jones looks set to clock up a first in his stellar career by featuring for both teams in the same game.
Jones announced his retirement from international rugby earlier this month after making a world record 170 Test match appearances for Wales and the British and Irish Lions.
The former Wales captain skippered the Barbarians to victory against a World XV at Twickenham on Sunday.
And he will again line-up for the Baa-baas on Wednesday in a match to mark Swansea Rugby Club’s 150th anniversary year.
Swansea-born Jones made 35 appearances for his hometown club between 2004 and 2006.
“After 17 years (of Test rugby), he got his first Barbarians call-up and he has got his second one tomorrow,” Barbarians coach John Mulvihill said.
“You will probably see him in an All Whites jersey in the second half. He might lead the Swansea team out at half-time.
“I was still taken aback that he wanted to play. He said ‘it’s in my parish and I want to play against my team’.
“It means a lot to him. I don’t think it’s going to be his sign-off. He has got a few miles to go yet.”
Jones will be joined in the Barbarians team at St Helen’s by the likes of Wales flanker Dan Lydiate and former England centre Billy Twelvetrees.
And Jones’ second-row partner, former Wales forward Bradley Davies, is poised to make his final appearance before retirement.
Davies, 36, won 66 caps for his country and played for Cardiff, Wasps and the Ospreys.
Roma boss Jose Mourinho said Sevilla’s six previous Europa League trophy wins will count for little against his side in Wednesday’s final in Budapest.
Sevilla are bidding for a record-extending seventh triumph at the Puskas Arena, in a match the Hungarian media have dubbed ‘The Specialists against The Special One’.
Mourinho has yet to lose in five major European finals as a manager, while Sevilla have won all six of their Europa League finals.
The Portuguese told a press conference: “History does not play. My colleague (Sevilla head coach Jose Luis Mendilibar) thinks otherwise, I have respect for him.
“He believes that history makes Sevilla favourites, I respect that. We are in the final because we deserve to be.
“They have a history that we do not have. For them to play the final is a normal thing, for us it is an extraordinary event.”
Mourinho is aiming to become the first manager to win the Europa League with three different clubs after previous successes with Porto (2003) and Manchester United (2017).
The 60-year-old former Chelsea boss added: “We are two great teams, with high-level players.
“It’s curious because we talk about coaching experience, but we face a Sevilla side that has very accustomed players.
“They are a bit more experienced in finals, but my team comes here ready. We have played a lot of European games in the last two seasons.”
Mourinho’s latest European trophy triumph came last season when he led Roma to victory over Feyenoord in the inaugural Europa Conference League final.
Roma finished second in this season’s Europa League qualifying group behind Real Betis and overcame RB Salzburg, Real Sociedad and Feyenoord in the knockout rounds before edging past Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 on aggregate in their semi-final.
The Italian side, currently sixth in Serie A with one game remaining, could be boosted by the return of former United defender Chris Smalling (hip), while Argentina’s Paulo Dybala is hoping to play some part despite an ankle injury.
Sevilla head coach Mendilibar, 62, will become the oldest manager to win the Europa League if the Andalusians seal a record-extending seventh tournament win.
He said the side which makes the fewest errors on the night at the Puskas Arena will prevail.
The former Eibar and Alaves boss said: “Mistakes are what you pay for in games like this and it’s about making the fewest mistakes possible.
“We’ve eliminated big teams, but the most difficult one is ahead of us. Whoever makes the fewest mistakes will win.”
Mendilibar has transformed Sevilla since replacing Jorge Sampaoli at the end of March when they were two points above LaLiga’s relegation zone.
They have risen to 11th in the table, 10 points clear of the drop zone with one game left, and won their Europa League quarter-final and semi-final under Mendilibar against United and Juventus respectively.
Bob Myers is reportedly stepping down as president and general manager of the Golden State Warriors after leading the franchise to four NBA titles during his 11 years at the helm.
The news was first reported Tuesday by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
The 48-year-old Myers joined the Warriors’ front office in 2011 and was promoted to GM in April 2012.
Since taking over, he hired Steve Kerr as coach, signed Stephen Curry to two supermax contracts, drafted Draymond Green and oversaw the deals for Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala and Andrew Wiggins.
Under his direction, he helped build the Warriors into one of the most successful franchises in the NBA with four titles and six total trips to the Finals in the last nine years and was twice named the league’s executive of the year.
Golden State, however, was eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semi-finals 2 ½ weeks ago – the franchise’s first playoff loss before the Finals under Kerr.
During Myers' 11 seasons as GM, the Warriors compiled a 571-304 regular-season record – the most wins for any team over that span.
Myers’ decision to step down is the first of what could be a number of major changes for the Warriors this offseason.
Green has a player option on his contract for the 2023-24 season and Klay Thompson is entering the final year of his deal and is eligible for an extension.
Rangers have announced the signing of Chelsea right-back Dujon Sterling.
The 23-year-old will join on a four-year contract on July 1 when his Chelsea deal expires.
The versatile player made two substitute outings for Chelsea in cup competitions but has made more than 100 first-team appearances across loan spells with Coventry, Wigan, Blackpool and Stoke. He played 28 times this season with Sky Bet Championship side Stoke.
Rangers manager Michael Beale told his club’s official website: “I am delighted to welcome Dujon to Rangers, he is an exciting young player who, I’m sure, will be a great addition to our squad.
“He is someone I was aware of from my time at Chelsea, and I have always kept an eye on his career as it has progressed.
“He is a very powerful and strong defender, who has fantastic attacking qualities and I look forward to working with him at Rangers.”
Sterling added: “I am really excited to come to such a big club, there’s a lot of history and the supporters are so passionate, so I am thrilled.
“I wasn’t expecting to make my mind up about my future this quickly, but the gaffer came in for me straight away and what he proposed to me was everything that I believe I need.
“We were on the same wavelength, he believes in me and I believe in what he is trying to do as well so it was a no-brainer for me to come.”
Middleham Park Racing will have their first Betfred Derby runner as Dear My Friend bids to do his owners proud this weekend.
The chestnut is one of 16 possibles for the Epsom Classic on Saturday and will mark a significant milestone when he carries the syndicate’s familiar pale blue and orange silks in the revered Group One.
The colt’s route to the Derby included the Dante at York earlier in the month, an established trial in which he finished eighth, and a win in the Listed Burradon Stakes on Newcastle’s all-weather track in early April.
Those efforts, added to two successes and a handful of Listed and Group performances as a juvenile, have left him on a rating of 104 ahead of the Derby – for which he is currently a 100-1 shot for trainer Charlie Johnston.
“It’s our first ever runner in the race, we’re going into it with eyes wide open,” said Mike Prince of Middleham Park.
“He was well beaten in the Dante but we think the step up in trip will suit him. There’ll be a few horses in the race who don’t say, there’ll be a few horses in the race who don’t handle the track and there’ll be a few horses in the race who don’t handle the occasion – hopefully we’ll be there trying to pick up some of the pieces.
“He’ll need to take a step up in his form, he’s a notch below the favourites at the moment but we’re hoping that step up in trip will lead to some improvement from him. He’s got a lovely, long stride and a slow cadence.”
Though likely to be an outsider with the market favouring Group winners such as Auguste Rodin and Derby Trial winner Military Order, it is not unheard of that a horse at a big price should go well and there are recent examples in Hoo Ya Mal, who was second at 150-1 last year, and 50-1 chance Mojo Star who came second the year before.
Prince said: “There have been some horses at big prices making up the placings in recent years, Hoo Ya Mal was 150-1 and I think the third and fourth that year were big enough prices (Westover at 25-1 and Masekela at 66-1).
“That’s one of the things we said to the owners when were deciding to enter, there’s good place money down to sixth and they’re all delighted that we’re rolling the dice.
“He is rated 104 so he is going there on his merits, it’s a race with a great sense of tradition and there’ll certainly be a good contingent there to support him and enjoy the occasion.”
Middleham Park Racing will have their first Betfred Derby runner as Dear My Friend bids to do his owners proud this weekend.
The chestnut is one of 16 possibles for the Epsom Classic on Saturday and will mark a significant milestone when he carries the syndicate’s familiar pale blue and orange silks in the revered Group One.
The colt’s route to the Derby included the Dante at York earlier in the month, an established trial in which he finished eighth, and a win in the Listed Burradon Stakes on Newcastle’s all-weather track in early April.
Those efforts, added to two successes and a handful of Listed and Group performances as a juvenile, have left him on a rating of 104 ahead of the Derby – for which he is currently a 100-1 shot for trainer Charlie Johnston.
“It’s our first ever runner in the race, we’re going into it with eyes wide open,” said Mike Prince of Middleham Park.
“He was well beaten in the Dante but we think the step up in trip will suit him. There’ll be a few horses in the race who don’t say, there’ll be a few horses in the race who don’t handle the track and there’ll be a few horses in the race who don’t handle the occasion – hopefully we’ll be there trying to pick up some of the pieces.
“He’ll need to take a step up in his form, he’s a notch below the favourites at the moment but we’re hoping that step up in trip will lead to some improvement from him. He’s got a lovely, long stride and a slow cadence.”
Though likely to be an outsider with the market favouring Group winners such as Auguste Rodin and Derby Trial winner Military Order, it is not unheard of that a horse at a big price should go well and there are recent examples in Hoo Ya Mal, who was second at 150-1 last year, and 50-1 chance Mojo Star who came second the year before.
Prince said: “There have been some horses at big prices making up the placings in recent years, Hoo Ya Mal was 150-1 and I think the third and fourth that year were big enough prices (Westover at 25-1 and Masekela at 66-1).
“That’s one of the things we said to the owners when were deciding to enter, there’s good place money down to sixth and they’re all delighted that we’re rolling the dice.
“He is rated 104 so he is going there on his merits, it’s a race with a great sense of tradition and there’ll certainly be a good contingent there to support him and enjoy the occasion.”
Chris Woakes pointed to misfortune suffered by the injured pair Jofra Archer and Olly Stone as one of the reasons he finds himself in contention for Ashes selection this summer.
Archer was ruled out of contention with a stress fracture to his elbow sustained playing for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League, while Stone will miss at least the first Test with a hamstring injury.
Woakes had himself missed over a year of first-class cricket following knee surgery before returning to play for Warwickshire earlier in the summer.
The 34-year-old has been recalled to Brendon McCullum’s England side for the match against Ireland at Lord’s which begins on Thursday – his first home Test appearance since he featured against the West Indies in June 2020.
The seamer took six for 17 on his last appearance against Ireland back in 2019 and is hoping another strong performance could kick open the door to Ashes selection.
“If you’d have asked me a month or two ago whether I’d even be in this squad – probably not, really,” said Woakes. “Looking at the pool of fast bowlers that were available, you stick Jofra (Archer) and Olly Stone in the mix as well, I might not have been. Their misfortune means I’m here.
“But that’s the game, isn’t it? Injuries happen and things do change quite quickly. All part of my prep this summer was to miss IPL, play some county cricket for Warwickshire and try and get myself in the space where, if I was to get the call, then I’m ready. Thankfully it’s worked out nicely for myself.”
Lord’s has been a fruitful ground for Woakes, playing host to his only Test hundred against India in 2018 as well as being the setting for three five-wicket hauls.
After a year in injury limbo, he spoke of his gratitude at being having given the chance to put himself in contention for the Ashes – the first Test of which is at Edgbaston in June – and an opportunity to banish memories of the 4-0 series defeat in Australia during the 2020-21 edition.
“I suppose (it has been limbo) in a way,” he said. “Last summer wasn’t nice, because I tried to put the surgery off. I didn’t want to have it until it was a last resort, but it did get to the stage where it was last resort.
“It wasn’t serious surgery, but you never know how you’re going to come back from it, especially as it was the front knee, bowler’s knee.
“Thankfully, the surgeon did a good job, I’ve healed nicely and it’s pretty good. It was a tough summer but the winter well from a white-ball perspective so I’m looking forward to this summer.
“Without a shadow of a doubt (there were dark moments), you go through days when you’re injured and you see cricket going on, not just England, any cricket with Warwickshire as well, you want to be a part of that.
“I think the older you get and the more cricket you miss, you think it’s an opportunity missed. To miss a whole summer was not ideal, and there are moments where you do get a bit dark, not overly dark.
“But it’s that feeling that you’re losing valuable time to be playing cricket, making memories and making the most of your career.”
Hibernian will host a 24-hour charity football match at their training ground next month in memory of their late owner Ron Gordon.
The event will kick off at 3pm on Saturday, June 24 and finish the following afternoon, with as many supporters as possible encouraged to participate, while there will also be involvement from Lee Johnson’s first team.
Gordon died in February after a battle with cancer and funds raised from the match in his honour will go to the Hibernian Community Foundation.
“Ron was an extremely passionate man and someone who cared dearly about the role the football club plays in the local community,” said chief executive Ben Kensell.
“We want to create something special and something that carries on the legacy of a great man, by bringing supporters and people together, right to the heart of the football club, to raise money for the Hibernian Community Foundation.
“I think this challenge is really exciting and could be really testing – especially for those playing at 3am or 4am – but ultimately, it’ll be a good laugh for everyone and will bring the football club, the supporters, and the Community Foundation all together.”
An illegal streaming gang who offered cut-price subscriptions for Premier League matches to more than 50,000 people have been jailed.
The Premier League said five men were convicted of conspiracy to defraud, money laundering and contempt of court after generating more than £7 million in five years.
Mark Gould, from London, was reported to have masterminded the operation and was handed an 11-year prison sentence at Chesterfield Crown Court on Tuesday.
The 36-year-old and co-defendants Steven Gordon, Peter Jolley, William Brown and Christopher Felvus offered illegal access to matches from hundreds of channels around the world, as well as tens of thousands of on-demand films and TV shows.
A sixth gang member, Zak Smith, failed to appear at court for sentencing and a warrant has been issued for his arrest, the Premier League said.
The league added that the illegal streaming businesses had 30 employees, with one undercover at a specialist anti-piracy company.
Brown, from Stoke-on-Trent, denied the offences, claiming to have been an undercover informant acting in the interests of law enforcement authorities and broadcasters
But the 33-year-old was unanimously convicted by a jury after a seven-week trial as the Premier League said he used his technical skills to hack legitimate customers’ accounts to access and copy streams – intending for them to take the blame if identified by authorities.
The prosecution was supported by Hammersmith & Fulham Council’s trading standards team and the intellectual property protection organisation Fact.
Premier League general counsel Kevin Plumb said: “Today’s sentencing is the result of a long and complex prosecution of a highly sophisticated operation.
“The sentences handed down, which are the longest sentences ever issued for piracy-related crimes, vindicate the efforts made to bring these individuals to justice and reflect the severity and extent of the crimes.
“This prosecution is another concrete example of the clear links between piracy and wider criminality, a warning we repeatedly make.
“While most Premier League fans enjoy watching our games in a safe way, those who were customers of these services were effectively supporting individuals involved in other sinister and dangerous organised crime.
“The Premier League’s substantial financial contribution to the entire football pyramid is made possible through the ability to sell our broadcast rights.
“We are pleased that through rulings such as this, the courts continue to show that they recognise the importance of safeguarding the Premier League’s rights.
“We will continue to protect our rights and our fans by investigating and prosecuting illegal operators at all levels.”
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