US authorities seize sports streaming web sites ahead of the Super Bowl

US AUTHORITIES have seized 16 illegal sports streaming web sites just days before Super Bowl XLVI is set to kick off.

According to Reuters, a Michigan man has been charged with running nine of the web sites, which the government said provided links to other web sites that hosted 'pirated' telecasts from the National Football League, National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, World Wrestling Entertainment and TNA Impact Wrestling.

Sports broadcast 'piracy' apparently costs the leagues and television broadcasters "millions of dollars a year", and of course they say that the cost is then passed on to those who buy tickets and subscibe to sports TV networks.

However, in a case of brilliant timing, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady admitted his own use of an illegal web site.

He said in a video posted Thursday on the NFL website, "Last year, you know, I was rehabbing my foot, you know, in Costa Rica, watching the game on an illegal Super Bowl website. And now I'm actually playing in the game. So it's pretty cool."

The web sites are firstrow.tv, firstrowsports.com, firstrowsports.net, firstrowsports.tv, hq-streams.tv, robplay.tv, soccertvlive.net, sports95.com, sports95.net, sports95.org, sportswwe.net, sportswwe.tv, sportswwe.com, xonesports.tv, youwwe.com and youwwe.n.

Yonjo Quiroa, 28, is the defendant who faces one count of criminal copyright infringement. µ