Streaming sport in the UK: Watch the action on the go with these services
Regardless of your sport of choice, chances are you can stream it your way in the UK. This is how.
Like in most parts of the globe, the streaming of content and particularly live sport has come a long way in the United Kingdom.
A market that was once overloaded with pop-up-fuelled, unreliable and often illegal streaming options now has a number of official, legitimate choices for viewing sport on your preferred device.
Compare sports streaming platforms
In the UK, there are still some sporting events you can access via traditional mediums, such as Wimbledon or the FIFA World Cup on the BBC or the England men’s football team in action on ITV. But these days a huge amount of sports content can only be accessed via pay TV or streaming services.
Mobile phones and tablets, certain smart TVs and gaming consoles are all viewing options for a vast array of leagues, tournaments and competitions, depending on the provider.
Pay TV operators like BT Sport (UEFA Champions League, Bundesliga, MotoGP, UFC and more) and Sky Sports (international cricket, the EFL, golf’s four major tournaments, Formula One etc) hold the rights to a litany of top sports and make them available via TV or various streaming options.
For the Premier League, the jewel in many sports lovers’ eyes, varying numbers of live games can be seen on Sky Sports, BT Sport and Amazon Prime Video, with highlights on BBC Sport.
If you have a BT Sport or Sky Sports subscription you can access their content online. If not, you can still use streaming sites like NOW. With NOW, you can access daily, weekly or monthly passes to all Sky Sports channels. We have put together a review of NOW here, including discount codes and eligible devices.
You can access Sky Sports or BT Sport through British telcos like TalkTalk. Eurosport is another subscription option, which you can sign up to directly or via Amazon Prime, Sky, Virgin Media or BT.
It’s also not just the live action itself sports fans seek. A number of streaming sites also offer features like split screens, highlights, multiple camera angles and dedicated shows as selling points.
Sports streaming platforms in the UK
1 - 15 of 15
What you need to stream sport in the UK
As mentioned some mobile phone carriers like Vodafone, BT and TalkTalk have jumped onto the sports streaming bandwagon. In terms of devices, Apple TV, select Samsung and LG TVs, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Roku, plus Macs and PCs are among the other ways to access some of the content. Providers typically have monthly and annual subscriptions.
How much data does streaming live sport use in the UK?
It depends on your provider and bandwidth. For example, Chromecast’s video output is 1080p, while it also has 4K available on Chromecast Ultra. Apple TV also has 1080p and 4K options.
As a guide, if you have an Internet connection speed of around 30Mbps for download and 2.5Mbps for uploading you should be able to access content to most devices without any buffering or other issues. Streaming sports in 4K uses around 7GB/hour while HD uses a little less at around 3GB/hour. An entire UHD football match on the BBC iPlayer will use around 10GB. You can compare broadband plans here.
Image source: Getty Images
More guides on Finder
-
Winners of the Finder Banking Innovation Awards 2023 announced
Now in their fourth year, we unveil the winners and highly commended companies of the Finder Banking Innovation Awards 2023.
-
The winners of the Finder Banking Innovation Awards 2023 have been announced!
Find out who has been voted as the winning and highly commended companies in the Finder Banking Innovation Awards 2023.
-
Finder Banking Innovation Awards 2023
Recognising innovation in digital banking, business banking, high street current accounts, personal finance apps and kids’ spending apps.
-
Best ways to invest £100 per month
Find out how you can start building wealth by investing just £100 a month along with some of the best ways to invest.
-
The best stock trading apps and platforms in the UK
We’ve tested, analysed and scored trading apps to find the 10 best trading platforms in the UK, who they’re best for and the pros and cons.
-
How to buy Shein shares when it goes public
Everything we know about the Shein IPO, plus information on how to buy shares.
-
4 ways to teach your children about money at Christmas
Help your kids learn to budget, manage their money and save this festive season with these simple money lessons.
-
Robinhood share trading app set to launch in the UK
Robinhood is close to launching in the UK. Find out when it’s happening, what investments will be available on the commission-free trading app and how it plans to make money.
-
One week to go until FinTech Connect 2023
There’s one week to go until FinTech Connect 2023 returns to London on 6 and 7 December. Get 20% off your ticket with Finder.