Rojadirecta is a Spanish sports link aggregator, founded in 2005, that lists and indexes links to sports broadcasts hosted elsewhere on the web rather than hosting the video itself. If you’ve landed here wondering why it won’t load on a UK broadband connection, the short answer is that it’s named directly in a High Court blocking order obtained by the Premier League, so major UK internet providers are required to block access to it.
This piece covers what Rojadirecta actually is, its long and genuinely unusual legal history in Spain and the United States, why it’s specifically blocked for UK users, and where things stand with the ongoing legal case against its founder. It also covers legitimate, current ways to watch Premier League and other football in the UK, since that’s usually what people searching this term actually want.
What Rojadirecta actually is
Rojadirecta doesn’t host sports streams itself. It operates as a directory, listing links submitted by users that point to streams and, historically, torrent files hosted on other sites, organised by sport, league and kick-off time. This distinction between hosting and linking became central to almost every legal case involving the site.
The site was founded and run by Puerto 80 Projects, a Spanish company controlled by Igor Seoane, and built a large following across Spain, the UK and Latin America as a free way to find live football, basketball, tennis and other sport without a paid subscription.
Rojadirecta’s unusual legal history
Cleared twice by Spanish courts (2009 and 2010). Sports rights holder Audiovisual Sport brought an action against Rojadirecta in 2007, and Spanish courts ruled in 2009 and 2010 that the site’s linking activity did not amount to copyright infringement under Spanish law at the time.
Seized by US authorities without a court order (2011). A few days before the Super Bowl in January 2011, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement seized the rojadirecta.com and rojadirecta.org domains as part of an operation called “Operation In Our Sites,” despite the Spanish rulings. Puerto 80 sued the US government, and after roughly 18 months of litigation the government dropped the case and returned both domains in August 2012.
Barred from operating in Spain (2015 onward). The legal picture in Spain shifted. A Madrid court ruling in 2015, upheld on appeal in 2018, found that Rojadirecta’s activity did infringe copyright and ordered the site to stop operating for Spanish visitors, a decision Spain’s Supreme Court declined to overturn.
Operator held personally liable (2022). Spain’s Supreme Court went further in 2022, ruling that Igor Seoane was personally liable for the copyright infringement committed through the platform, not just his company, opening the door to rights holders pursuing him directly for damages.
A 31.6 million euro damages order (December 2023). The Commercial Court of A Coruña ordered Seoane and Puerto 80 to pay around 31.6 million euros in damages to Mediapro, reflecting the estimated cost of legally licensing the content Rojadirecta streamed during a single Spanish football season.
An ongoing criminal case. Spanish prosecutors are separately pursuing criminal charges against Seoane and several associates, with LaLiga and Mediapro pushing for prison sentences as high as six years, alongside further financial damages. As of early 2026 this case was heading toward trial rather than resolved, so it’s worth checking current news before assuming a final outcome.
Why Rojadirecta is blocked in the UK specifically
Since 2012, the Premier League and other UK rights holders have used section 97A of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to obtain High Court injunctions ordering major UK internet providers to block named piracy and streaming-link sites. Rojadirecta appears explicitly on these lists. Virgin Media’s own published list of court-ordered blocks names Rojadirecta, LiveTV and Drakulastream under an order dated 21 May 2015 obtained by the Football Association Premier League.
These blocking orders work by requiring the six main UK retail ISPs, covering close to all UK broadband connections, to block the site’s domains and known IP addresses at the network level. That’s the practical reason a UK visitor typically can’t reach Rojadirecta directly through a standard home broadband connection, regardless of what the site’s own legal status happens to be in Spain at any given moment.
What this means for someone in the UK who’s used it
Rights holders in these cases have consistently targeted the sites and their operators rather than individual viewers, and the Spanish rulings and damages orders described above are all directed at Rojadirecta’s operator, not its users. That said, streaming content from an unauthorised source generally exists in a legal grey area for viewers under UK copyright law, and the safest and simplest position is that using licensed, official services avoids the question entirely rather than relying on how enforcement has happened to play out so far.
Legitimate ways to watch football in the UK instead
Sky Sports. Sky holds the largest share of live Premier League rights for the 2025/26 to 2028/29 cycle, showing around 215 matches a season across its dedicated football and Main Event channels. You can access Sky Sports without a long-term contract through a NOW Sports Membership, priced at £14.99 for a day pass or £34.99 for a month pass.
TNT Sports. TNT holds the remaining Premier League package, around 52 matches a season, plus the UEFA Champions League and Europa League, and is accessible on a rolling monthly basis through Discovery+ without needing a Sky or cable contract.
BBC Match of the Day and iPlayer. The BBC holds highlights rights to every Premier League match, shown free on Match of the Day and BBC iPlayer, with that arrangement running until at least 2029. A TV Licence is required to watch live sport or use iPlayer on any channel or device, according to TV Licensing.
Free-to-air cup football. Selected FA Cup matches involving Premier League clubs are shown free on BBC and ITV, and both broadcasters carry major international tournaments live, including the 2026 World Cup.
Amazon Prime Video. Amazon no longer holds live Premier League rights as of the 2025/26 season, following the move of its former December fixture package to TNT Sports, so don’t expect Premier League football there for now.
| Broadcaster | Matches per season | How to access | Rough cost |
| Sky Sports | Around 215 | NOW Sports Pass, Sky TV package | £14.99 day pass, £34.99 month pass |
| TNT Sports | Around 52 | Discovery+, Sky or Virgin add-on | Monthly rolling subscription |
| BBC (highlights) | All 380 | Match of the Day, iPlayer | Free with a TV Licence |
| Amazon Prime Video | None currently | N/A for Premier League | Rights moved to TNT for 2025/26 |
Broadcast rights and prices shift between seasons, so it’s worth double-checking current listings on the broadcaster’s own site before assuming any of these figures still apply by the time you’re reading this.
FAQS
What is Rojadirecta?
Rojadirecta is a Spanish sports link aggregator, founded in 2005, that indexes links to sports broadcasts hosted on other websites rather than hosting the content itself. It became known for football, basketball and tennis links across Spain and beyond.
Why is Rojadirecta blocked in the UK?
Rojadirecta is named directly in a High Court blocking order obtained by the Premier League under section 97A of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Major UK internet providers, including Virgin Media, are required to block the site’s domains and IP addresses as a result.
Is Rojadirecta legal?
Rojadirecta’s legal status has changed significantly over time. Spanish courts cleared it in 2009 and 2010, but a 2015 ruling, upheld on appeal in 2018 and by the Supreme Court in 2022, found its activity infringed copyright, and the site’s operator has since been ordered to pay tens of millions of euros in damages.
Was Rojadirecta really seized by the US government?
Yes, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement seized the rojadirecta.com and rojadirecta.org domains in January 2011 without a prior court order. The US government eventually dropped its case and returned the domains in August 2012 after around 18 months of litigation.
What happened to Rojadirecta’s founder?
Igor Seoane, Rojadirecta’s founder, was ruled personally liable for copyright infringement by Spain’s Supreme Court in 2022, and in December 2023 he and his company were ordered to pay approximately 31.6 million euros in damages to Mediapro. A separate criminal case against Seoane and several associates was still heading toward trial as of early 2026.
Can I get in trouble for using Rojadirecta in the UK?
Legal action to date has targeted Rojadirecta’s operators rather than individual viewers, but streaming from unauthorised sources sits in a legal grey area for viewers under UK copyright law. Using a licensed broadcaster removes that uncertainty entirely.
How can I watch Premier League football legally in the UK?
Sky Sports and TNT Sports hold the live Premier League rights for 2025/26 onward, accessible without a long contract through NOW and Discovery+ respectively. Match of the Day on BBC iPlayer shows free highlights of every match with a valid TV Licence.
