ESCALATING a sports television rights dispute, a Qatar-owned broadcaster accused Asian soccer leadership of breaking contracts and deciding to stream games for free in Saudi Arabia.

BeIN Sports said it intends to seek arbitration against the Asian Football Confederation under the terms of its contract. The network claims a breach of a multi-million dollar agreement to broadcast games exclusively across the Middle East, including the continent’s Champions League.

The AFC said it will use its Facebook and YouTube channels to broadcast Saudi-hosted soccer games in AFC competitions, an effort to protect broadcast partners and “tackle attempts to illegally exploit those rights wherever it occurs.”

Bootlegged feeds from BeIN of top international soccer games have been pirated by Saudi Arabia-based BeoutQ since 2017. Saudi authorities declared BeIN illegal in the kingdom, a proxy battle in the nation’s wider economic and diplomatic boycott that was launched nearly two years ago.

BeIN will likely file for arbitration in Singapore. The network claimed the confederation’s actions threaten the business model that sports rights holders rely on worldwide. (SD-Agencies)