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UEFA Champions League

How & Where to Watch UEFA Champions League in USA & Worldwide

The Champions League is one of the most popular annual competitions. Depending on your location and provider, you can stream it for free. This guide shares how and where to watch UEFA Champions League matches for free.

Sandra PattisonBrett DayIgor Kurtz

Written by Sandra Pattison (Writer, Editor)

Reviewed by Brett Day (Writer, Editor)

Facts checked by Igor Kurtz (Fact-checking editor)

Last Updated: 2024-09-30T17:16:34+00:00

All our content is written fully by humans; we do not publish AI writing. Learn more here.

Key Takeaways: Watch UEFA Champions League in the U.S.

  1. Begin your VPN journey by signing up for NordVPN online, taking advantage of its 73% discount offer and 30-day money-back guarantee.
  2. Connect to an Irish server.
  3. Go to the RTE Player website and stream the UEFA Champions League.

Best VPNs for Streaming The UEFA Champions League:

  1. NordVPN — Unrivaled protection and blazing-fast connections. Sign up now to get 73% off the first two years.
  2. Surfshark — Best VPN with unlimited simultaneous connections. Surfshark’s best deal is available at a 86% discount.
  3. ExpressVPN — Hassle-free VPN with advanced capabilities. ExpressVPN’s yearly plan offers 49% off on the first year with three months free.

Facts & Expert Analysis

  • Origins: The annual UEFA Champions League soccer competition has been around since 1955 and was known as the European Cup before the 1992-1993 season. It was abbreviated as the UCL or UEFA CL.
  • The 2023-2024 final: The 2023-2024 Champions League started in September 2023 and the final takes place on Saturday, June 1. 
  • Watch for free: Fans can watch the tournament for free on services like RTE Player in Ireland, ServusTV in Austria and Mega TV in Greece. A VPN can help you access these services if you’re not in those countries. 
Best VPN for UEFA Champions League

The UEFA Champions League is well underway, and coverage is not limited to Europe. Most countries have at least one channel or streaming service covering the games. You may have followed the competition from the start, or you might only be here for the final games. Either way, this guide will list where to watch UEFA Champions League matches, including for free. 

We’ve listed the complete Champions League schedule to ensure you don’t miss a game. We’ve also listed where you can stream the matches in different countries. Though the tournament might be on a service you subscribe to, you may not necessarily be able to stream it in your country. 

For instance, you can watch all the games on Paramount+, but only in the U.S. With some services, you can use a VPN (virtual private network) to access the matches. We’ll touch on this more later, but if you want a quick recommendation, NordVPN is the best VPN to use. Read our UEFA Euro guide for how to watch that tournament.

 

  • 10/01/2024

    We realigned the VPN order based on current performance metrics and feature sets.

UEFA Champions League TV Schedule

You can see when all of the UEFA Champions League games take place, from those in each group stage right down to the finals, in the table below. We’ve also included where each of the final-stage matches will stream in the U.S., including Spanish-language coverage. 

See the Full UEFA Champions League TV Schedule
Group Stages
DateMatch
September 19Milan vs Newcastle
Young Boys vs RB Leipzig
PSG vs Dortmund
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Porto
Man City vs Crvena Zvezda
Lazio vs Atlético Madrid
Barcelona vs Antwerp
Feyenoord vs Celtic
September 20Real Madrid vs Union Berlin
Galatasaray vs Copenhagen
Bayern Munich vs Man United
Benfica vs RB Salzburg
Braga vs Napoli
Arsenal vs PSV
Sevilla vs Lens
Real Sociedad vs Inter Milan
October 3Union Berlin vs Braga
RB Salzburg vs Real Sociedad
Inter Milan vs Benfica
PSV vs Sevilla
Copenhagen vs Bayern Munich
Man United vs Galatasaray
Napoli vs Real Madrid
Lens vs Arsenal
October 4Atlético Madrid vs Feyenoord
Antwerp vs Shakhtar Donetsk
Crvena Zvezda vs Young Boys
Dortmund vs Milan
Newcastle vs PSG
RB Leipzig vs Man City
Porto vs Barcelona
Celtic vs Lazio
October 24Galatasaray vs Bayern Munich
Inter Milan vs RB Salzburg
Union Berlin vs Napoli
Sevilla vs Arsenal
Braga vs Real Madrid
Lens vs PSV
Benfica vs Real Sociedad
Man United vs Copenhagen
October 25Barcelona vs Shakhtar Donetsk
Feyenoord vs Lazio
Newcastle vs Dortmund
RB Leipzig vs Crvena Zvezda
Young Boys vs Man City
PSG vs Milan
Celtic vs Atlético Madrid
Antwerp vs Porto
November 7Dortmund vs Newcastle
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Barcelona
Lazio vs Feyenoord
Porto vs Antwerp
Man City vs Young Boys
Milan vs PSG
Atlético Madrid vs Celtic
Crvena Zvezda vs RB Leipzig
November 8Real Sociedad vs Benfica
Napoli vs Union Berlin
Copenhagen vs Man United
RB Salzburg vs Inter Milan
Bayern Munich vs Galatasaray
Arsenal vs Sevilla
PSV vs Lens
Real Madrid vs Braga
November 28Lazio vs Celtic
Shakhtar Donetsk vs Antwerp
Milan vs Dortmund
Feyenoord vs Atlético Madrid
PSG vs Newcastle 
Barcelona vs Porto
Young Boys vs Crvena Zvezda
Man City vs RB Leipzig
November 29Galatasaray vs Man United
Sevilla vs PSV
Bayern Munich vs Copenhagen
Real Madrid vs Napoli
Real Sociedad vs RB Salzburg
Braga vs Union Berlin
Arsenal vs Lens
Benfica vs Inter Milan
December 12Lens vs Sevilla
PSV vs Arsenal
Inter Milan vs Real Sociedad
Copenhagen vs Galatasaray
Man United vs Bayern Munich
Union Berlin vs Real Madrid
RB Salzburg vs Benfica
Napoli vs Braga
December 13RB Leipzig vs Young Boys
Crvena Zvezda vs Man City
Antwerp vs Barcelona
Porto vs Shakhtar Donetsk
Celtic vs Feyenoord
Dortmund vs PSG
Atlético Madrid vs Lazio
Newcastle vs Milan
Round of 16
DateMatch
February 13Copenhagen vs Man City
RB Leipzig vs Real Madrid
February 14PSG vs Real Sociedad
Lazio vs Bayern Munich
February 20PSV vs Dortmund
Inter Milan vs Atlético Madrid
February 21Porto vs Arsenal
Napoli vs Barcelona
March 5Bayern Munich vs Lazio
Real Sociedad vs PSG
March 6Real Madrid vs RB Leipzig
Man City vs Copenhagen
March 12Arsenal vs Porto
Barcelona vs Napoli
March 13Dortmund vs PSV
Atlético Madrid vs Inter Milan
Quarterfinals
DateMatch
April 9Arsenal vs Bayern Munich 
Real Madrid vs Man City
April 10PSG vs Barcelona
Atlético Madrid vs Dortmund
April 16Dortmund vs Atlético Madrid
Barcelona vs PSG
April 17Bayern Munich vs Arsenal
Man City vs Real Madrid
Semifinals 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET
DateMatchWhere to Watch in the US
April 30Bayern Munich vs Real MadridEnglish: CBS/Paramount+Spanish: Univision/TUDN/ViX
May 1Dortmund vs PSGEnglish: CBS/Paramount+Spanish: Univision/TUDN/ViX
May 7PSG vs DortmundEnglish: Paramount+Spanish: ViX
May 8Real Madrid vs Bayern MunichEnglish: CBS/Paramount+Spanish: ViX/TUDN
Final 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET
DateMatchWhere to Watch in the US
June 1Dortmund vs Real MadridEnglish: CBS/Paramount+Spanish: ViX

 

Where to Watch UEFA Champions League Matches & Finals

In this section, we note where you can watch the games by country. If you’re traveling and you want to watch a game on your favorite channel or service, a VPN can help. We have a complete how-to guide explaining the process of using a VPN further down. 

However, in some cases, a VPN won’t work. For instance, even though the tournament is available on Paramount Plus in the U.S., it isn’t on the service in any other country. For those with a non-U.S. Paramount+ subscription, you can’t simply hop on a U.S. VPN server and watch the games. 

Your actual Paramount+ account determines your location. So, unless you already have a U.S. subscription or don’t mind setting one up — for which you’ll need a U.S. payment method — you’re out of luck. Thankfully, there are plenty of other ways to tune in.

In addition to the countries listed below, you can watch coverage on DAZN in Canada, Stan Sport in Australia and beIN Sports Connect in New Zealand.

US

In America, all of the UEFA Champions League games are available on Paramount Plus, which is the same as the Super Bowl coverage. Though it won’t get you through the entire tournament, Paramount Plus offers a free seven-day trial, which you could use to watch the final. 

Select matches are also broadcast on CBS or CBS Sports Network. Spanish-language coverage is available on TUDN, UniMas, Univision and Univision’s streaming service, ViX (which also has a free trial). If you don’t have cable, CBS and some Spanish channels are available on live streaming services, such as fuboTV.

Germany

Highlights: 

  • Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid (4/30 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)
  • Dortmund vs PSG (5/1 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)
  • PSG vs Dortmund (5/7 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)
  • Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich (5/8 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)
  • Final: Dortmund vs Real Madrid (6/1 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)

The official broadcaster for the UEFA Champions League in Germany is DAZN. That said, with the help of a VPN, you can hop over to neighboring Austria and watch it for free on ServusTV.

France

Highlights: 

  • Dortmund vs PSG (5/1 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)
  • PSG vs Dortmund (5/7 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)

Canal+ and beIN Sports share the rights to the UEFA Champions League in France. Similar to German viewers, French viewers can use a VPN to access all the action on the Belgium network RTL Club for free as well.

UK

All of the UEFA Champions League coverage is broadcast on TNT Sports (previously known as BT Sports) in the U.K. It’s a cable channel, but it’s also available via a Discovery+ subscription. Discovery Plus offers a seven-day free trial as well.

Spain

Highlights: 

  • Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid (4/30 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)
  • Real Madrid vs Bayern Munich (5/8 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)
  • Final: Dortmund vs Real Madrid (6/1 12 p.m. PT / 3 p.m. ET)

In Spain, the Champions League games are exclusively available on MoviStar Plus+. It’s not a free service, but those who subscribe to Fusion or MiMoviStar have access to an exclusive offer until August 31. For a one-time fee of €30 (about $32) instead of the usual €45 (about $48) per month, you’ll get access to Champions League games and much more.

Where to Watch Europa League

The same channels and networks that cover the Champions League also cover the Europa League. The only difference is in Germany, where Europa League games are broadcast on RTL and select games are available on One Football.

Is It Possible to Watch the UEFA Champions League Live for Free?

Yes, there are a few options to watch the UEFA Champions League for free, though you might need to use a VPN if you’re not in the relevant country. 

You can use a VPN’s money-back guarantee to get a refund. Alternatively, there are plenty of free VPNs that work with live sports; you just need to check which free servers are available. You may need to set up an account with some of these services, but it’s completely free.

ServiceCountry
RTL Club🇧🇪 Belgium/Luxembourg
ServusTV🇦🇹 Austria
RTE Player🇮🇪 Ireland
MegaTV🇬🇷 Greece
Match TV🇷🇺 Russia

How to Watch the UEFA Champions League Free Online With a VPN

In this section, we’ll show you how to watch the UEFA Champions League for free on RTE Player in Ireland with the help of a VPN. You can follow similar steps if you’d prefer to watch the games on a different network; just make sure you connect to the correct country server. 

  1. Download and Install the VPN

    Check out NordVPN’s website and sign up for one of its plans. The two-year plan works out the cheapest and it comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

    nordvpn step 1
  2. Install the VPN’s App

    Install the VPN app on the device you plan to stream the matches on. Open the app and log in to your account.

    download nordvpn
  3. Connect to an Irish Server

    Find an Irish server — or one in a different country if needed — and click on it to connect. You can browse NordVPN’s servers by clicking on the country.

    nordvp ireland
    NordVPN has the fastest VPN speeds and affordable long-term plans.
  4. Go to RTE Player

    Open your browser and go to the RTE Player website. Then click “live” in the menu bar.

    rte player live
  5. Start Streaming the UEFA Champions League Games

    Click on RTE 2 to go to that channel’s livestream. You’ll then see the channel exactly as you would on TV. As long as you tune in at the correct time, you can watch the broadcasts live.

    rte player champions league live

The Best VPNs to Stream the UEFA Champions League

If you want to stream the UEFA Champions League games on one of the networks mentioned above but it’s not available in your region, our VPN recommendations below will help. Each option has fast speeds, excellent unblocking ability and a good range of servers to choose from. 

1. NordVPN— Best VPN for UEFA Champions League

NordVPN ireland servers
NordVPN has the fastest VPN speeds and affordable long-term plans.
Best VPN for UEFA Champions League

Pros:

  • Easily unblocks streaming services
  • Best-in-class speeds
  • Strong security

Cons:

  • Difficult mobile UI 

Stream like a local anywhere — get NordVPN’s 73% off deal with a 30-day refund policy.

Download
89 Mbps
Very Fast
Upload
9 Mbps
Very Fast
Latency
6 ms
Very Fast
Source: Cloudwards VPN Speed Test. We test daily. Data from 10/07/24 to 11/04/24
Data for region:

NordVPN is our favorite VPN. It offers the fastest average speeds and easily unblocks streaming services. You’ll have no problem watching the Champions League or other sports events, such as the Rugby World Cup. Plus, with servers in more countries than ExpressVPN, you can pick from any available broadcasts. 

However, we don’t love NordVPN’s mobile app. The interactive map lets you easily pick a server, but navigation doesn’t work very well on mobile devices. Find out more by using its 30-day money-back guarantee and reading our NordVPN review.

Basic
  • *The prices are charged in the first billing cycle only. Renewal prices vary.
  • Unlimited GB
  • 10
  • Yes
Plus
  • *The prices are charged in the first billing cycle only. Renewal prices vary.
  • Unlimited GB
  • 10
  • Yes
Ultimate
  • *The prices are charged in the first billing cycle only. Renewal prices vary.
  • Unlimited GB
  • 10
  • Yes

2. Surfshark— Best Budget UEFA Champions League VPN

Surfshark ireland
Surfshark offers unlimited simultaneous connections, along
with fast speeds and plenty of servers.

Pros:

  • Unlimited simultaneous connections
  • Unblocks streaming services
  • Long-term affordability

Cons:

  • High latency on some servers
  • Expensive monthly plans

Break free from geo-restrictions — sign up for Surfshark with a 86% discount today.

Download
90 Mbps
Very Fast
Upload
8 Mbps
Very Fast
Latency
103 ms
Good
Source: Cloudwards VPN Speed Test. We test daily. Data from 10/07/24 to 11/04/24
Data for region:

Surfshark is another VPN that will reliably allow you to stream the UEFA Champions League. It offers fast speeds, excellent unblocking ability and servers in 100 countries. Surfshark allows you to connect as many devices as you like, so your family and friends can watch the tournament too, or tune in to other sports like the NBA or NFL.

Surfshark has decent pricing, but only if you’re willing to opt for a long-term plan. Otherwise, the monthly plans are pricey. Just like our first two options, there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee so you can take it for a spin. Read our Surfshark review for more details.

Surfshark Starter
  • Unlimited GB bandwidth, Unlimited devices, Secure VPN, Ad blocker, Cookie pop-up blocker. Plans renew: $59.76 for one year, $59.76 per year for the two-year plan.
  • Unlimited GB
  • Unlimited
  • Yes
Surfshark One
  • Everything in Starter, plus Antivirus protection, Identity protection, Email Breach and Credit Card Alerts, Online Alias Plans renew: $79 for one year & $79 per year for the two-year plan.
  • Unlimited GB
  • Unlimited
Surfshark One+
  • Everything in One, plus Data removal Plans renew: $269.25 for one year, $404.65 for two years
  • Unlimited GB
  • Unlimited

3. ExpressVPN— Best Beginner VPN for UEFA Champions League

ExpressVPN has fast speeds, great unblocking ability and an easy-to-use app.

Pros:

  • Excellent streaming performance
  • Great security & privacy
  • Easy-to-use apps

Cons:

  • Expensive

Stream like a local anywhere — get ExpressVPN’s 49% off deal with a 30-day refund policy.

Download
86 Mbps
Very Fast
Upload
8 Mbps
Very Fast
Latency
4 ms
Very Fast
Source: Cloudwards VPN Speed Test. We test daily. Data from 10/07/24 to 11/04/24
Data for region:

There are many reasons to use ExpressVPN, but for streaming, it boils down to its top performance and ability to unblock any streaming service. It also has a large server network, meaning you can pick any of the networks we’ve mentioned and stream sports. On top of that, ExpressVPN’s app is as simple as it gets. Just find the server you need and connect to it. 

A disappointing factor is the cost. The higher prices may be off-putting, but understand that you’ll get an easy to use service that’ll help you watch sports streams from almost anywhere in the world. For instance, it’s one of the best BBC iPlayer VPNs, which is great for watching the FIFA Women’s World Cup

The 30-day money-back guarantee means you can easily get a refund. Our ExpressVPN review goes into more detail.

Final Thoughts

There are plenty of options around the globe for watching the UEFA Champions League online, even for free. If you’re outside of a country where you can watch for free, you can easily use a VPN to gain access. Use NordVPN for a truly immersive experience.

You don’t have to take our word for it, trying NordVPN yourself is completely risk-free, thanks to the 30-day refund period.

Which network will you watch the Champions League on? Will you need to use a VPN? If so, which VPN will you use? Lastly, which team do you think will win the Champions League? Let us know in the comments below and, as always, thank you for reading.

FAQ: Stream the UEFA Champions League

  • You can watch the UEFA Champions League for free on sites like RTE Player in Ireland, ServusTV in Austria and RTL Club in Belgium. Other official streaming services include Paramount Plus in the U.S. and DAZN in some countries.

  • Paramount+ is the home of the Champions League in the U.S. That said, you can use a VPN to watch the games for free on services like RTE Player in Ireland and ServusTV in Austria.

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