Guide: Is it illegal to stream live football matches on the internet?

Millions of fans ask themselves the same question every weekend but the answer is complicated

Is it illegal to watch live streams of football matches over the internet? Yes and no. It depends. If you're heading to dodgy, pop-up filled streaming sites, it can be. If you're live streaming via the apps and websites of legitimate broadcasters who own the TV rights, the answer is no - you're in the clear.

In this guide, we will show you which live streaming options to avoid because they are illegal, which ones you can use with confidence, and even a few special ones which tick all the boxes - free and legal.

The main problem with football live streaming is that it's usually a choice between two devils - you can watch for free but that's illegal and also not very enjoyable, or you can take the legal route and pay very high prices to watch live streams from the rights holders.

However, there are some options out there which are both free and legal. More on that later. Here's our guide to watching football live streams legally over the internet:

Illegal Live Streaming Sites

Stream2watch, Crackstreams and Sportsurge are just a few examples of football stream sites which are illegal. Watching matches on these sites is against the law. Doing so could result in legal ramifications for the user, as well as other issues.

These sites are often filled with annoying and harmful pop-ups, potential malware, even the threat of hackers. The streams of football matches on these types of dodgy, illegal sites are also of a very low quality and buffer constantly.

This is without even mentioning the often toxic chat which appears next to the stream. Sites like Stream2watch, Crackstreams and Sportsurge are best avoided if you don't want to break the law by watching live football matches.

These illegal sports live streaming sites don't own the rights to content they air. They are in breach of copyright law and constantly shut down by authorities and broadcasters working together to protect the integrity of the product.

Big Broadcasters

One way to live stream football matches over the internet is via the websites and apps of the big broadcasters who hold the rights to the content. Unlike the dodgy sites, apps like Sky Go and the BT Sport app allow fans to watch matches without any worries.

The downside of these options is that you must be a customer in order to access the live streams, and subscriptions to these big broadcasters can often be very expensive (cheaper options below).

However, if you have the money to subscribe to Sky Sports or BT Sport, be sure to take advantage of their free live streams which are included in their TV packages. Download the Sky Go or BT Sport app and start live streaming.

You can enjoy the matches in top quality, with no buffering, no pop-ups, no threats to your devices - the way football should be seen.

Free and Legal?

What if you don't have the cash to go down the traditional route? Well there are other options for you. You can watch some of the biggest and best football competitions in the world via live streaming, without breaking the bank. There are several rights holders out there who provide football live streams for free. Here are some examples:

Watch La Liga, Serie &, Ligue 1 & more for free with bet365

With bet365 you can watch some of the biggest football matches in the world with reliable, quality, and most importantly legal live streams on their website or via their mobile app. They hold the UK live streaming rights to competitions like La Liga, the Bundesliga, Serie A and more. Here's how to get started live streaming with bet365:

*You can follow these steps on desktop via the website or on your mobile device via the bet365 app.
*If you already have an account, you skip the registration process and simply login.

CLICK HERE TO JOIN BET365 AND START LIVE STREAMING

• Click "Join Now" at the top of the page.

• Enter your details into the next page to register for an account.
• Once registered, return to the homepage and login.
• When logged in, we recommend you make a deposit and a £5 qualifying bet in order to receive up to £50 in free bets.
• Then, navigate to the "Soccer" section from the menu on the left.
• Scroll down and find the league for the match you want to watch under "Competitions".
• All matches with a small video icon next to them are available for live streaming (including some of the biggest football leagues in the world).

• Click the match of your choice.
• Be sure you have already placed your qualifying bet.
• Wait until kick off, then click the play button to start watching the live stream.
• The live stream will start close to kick off so if you don't see a video box come back later.

*You can repeat this process for several matches. The only condition is that you place a bet within 24 hours of watching a match.  This includes the free bets you will get when signing up, meaning you'll gain access to many matches for free. Then if you run out of free bets, you can decide to make another deposit and place a bet to access more live streams at your own discretion. While this isn't technically free, it's a vastly cheaper offer than going direct to broadcasters. Most importantly, it's legal and it's safe.

Watch UCL for free with LiveScore via PureVPN

LiveScore is a website and app dedicated to football scores, stats, news and live streams, fronted by its global brand ambassador Cristiano Ronaldo. LiveScore represents a completely legitimate way of watching elite football via live streaming. Most impressively of all, it provides completely FREE football live streams, with no catch.

In various countries, LiveScore holds the live streaming rights to a variety of top competitons. In the UK you can download its LiveScore Bet app to watch plenty of action. The same applies in other countries.

Perhaps the best thing about LiveScore is that it holds the rights to show the UEFA Champions League via live streaming in the Republic of Ireland, completely free. With the help of our VPN partner, you can legally change the location of your desktop or mobile device to Ireland and watch UCL matches in flawless quality without pop-ups or malware for FREE. Here's how:

CLICK HERE TO JOIN PUREVPN (YOU NEED THIS TO LIVE STREAM FOR FREE)

• Add the PureVPN extension to your browser (desktop) or download the PureVPN mobile app (mobile).

• When you have registered a PureVPN account and installed PureVPN on your device, go ahead and login.
• After logging in using your details, choose the option to "Select Country", type "Ireland" in the search bar and hit "Connect".
• For all intents and purposes, you are now in Ireland and entitled to watch UCL matches for free with LiveScore.
   

• Head to the LiveScore website or download the LiveScore mobile app.
• Register for an account by entering a few details (after you have connected to Ireland via VPN).
• No banking details will be necessary as LiveScore is free to use.
• Login to the website or app.
• Scroll through the available matches for that day and click on the one you want to watch.
• All UCL matches will have a small play button icon next to them, indiciating that they are available for live streaming.
• When the match page opens, click the play button in the box at the top to start streaming.
• If nothing happens, you are too early. Come back a little closer to kick off.

Now you're all set to enjoy every UEFA Champions League match of the season with LiveScore. Just follow the same steps next time, login to PureVPN, change location, login to LiveScore, find your match and enjoy! It really is that simple. Now you don't need those dodgy illegal sites to watch top quality football matches on the intenet.

Watch the Bundesliga for free with OneFootball via PureVPN

If you already have a OneFootball account - skip registration, simply download/open the app or visit the website and login. Then follow the remaining instructions.

Follow the same PureVPN instructions as with LiveScore, but instead of "Ireland" change your location to "Brazil", then follow the guide below to enjoy FREE Bundesliga matches all season.

• Download the OneFootball app (available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store) or visit the OneFootball website.
• You will need a OneFootball account to access live streams. Click "create a new account" and complete a short registration form.

• After creating an account, return to the app or website homepage and click "login".
• Enter your login details (email and password).
• Now you will see the OneFootball homepage.
• On the website or app, click the "Matches" tab at the top or bottom of the page (depending on what you're using).
• At the bottom of the page, you'll see "Suggested Competitions", here click on "Bundesliga".
• Then you'll see a list of upcoming Bundesliga matches, all with the "Watch" tab next to them. That's because, unlike other matches on OneFootball, these are available for free live streaming.

• Around kick off time, click on the fixture you want to watch.
• You will be redirected to the specific match page. Click "Watch" from the tabs available on the match page.
• At the top of the page, you'll see a video box. Around the time of kick off, click the play button on the video to start live streaming.
• You can even set a stream reminder and receive notifications of when the stream is going live (shortly before kick off).
• If the stream doesn't work, it's because you're too early - come back a little later.

Now you're all set! With the help of PureVPN and OneFootball, either via your web browser or the apps on your mobile devices, you can watch every German Bundesliga match of the season totally free without using dodgy illegal streaming sites. Enjoy!

Just follow the same steps next time, minus the registration and login, and you're good to go.

OneFootball live streams are of high quality, reliable and have commentary. Most importantly, they are free and totally legal.

We hope you will enjoy legally watching elite football competitions via live streaming, and avoid the illegal websites which we mentioned at the beginning of this article. Those sites are harmful, dangerous and illegal.

For more fantastic legal football live streams, come back to Sporticos - we provide links to reliable, high quality, legal and FREE football live streams from some of the world's most prestigious competitions.