BeIN Media Group said it was “shocked and appalled” after an Egyptian court imposed a fine of $22m (€17.7m) on the broadcaster’s chief executive, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, for alleged violations of anti-trust rules.
The ruling by the Cairo Economic Tribunal was in response to a lawsuit filed by the state’s competition regulator. The court’s verdict can be appealed.
According to Egyptian prosecutors, beIN forced subscribers to switch from Egyptian satellite-television platform Nilesat to Qatari pay-television provider Sohail to continue watching beIN Sports. The prosecutors said that there was no technical reason for apparently enforcing the switch.
BeIN has rights for all major events operated by Fifa, excluding the Club World Cup, in multiple territories across the Middle East and North Africa.
“BeIN categorically rejects, and is shocked and appalled by, the judgement of the Cairo Economic Court in Egypt," beIN said in a statement. "The judgement is based on unfounded and politically motivated allegations by the Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA) that have no basis in fact or law. At all times, beIN has acted in full compliance with all relevant laws, including competition law, and will pursue all legal means available to challenge the judgment."
BeIN added that the ruling would be “deeply troubling” for other international companies looking to operate in Egypt.