Almost every network has a platform for showing matches online these days, but which are the best?
The days of scrambling to find a dodgy illegal stream to watch your favourite football matches are gone. You can now sit down on the sofa with your laptop, tablet or even staring up at your smart TV and legally watch the biggest events in the sport in stunning quality. No more pop-ups, no more toxic chatrooms, no more viruses. Anyone who is anyone has a live streaming platform or an app nowadays so whether it's the Premier League and La Liga or League Two and the Danish Superliga, there's an option for you.
We've selected the five best apps/platforms out there for watching live football in terms of user experience and content. Here they are, in no particular order.
Sky Go App
Of course the big two (Sky and BT) lead the way in terms of football live streaming. Sky TV subscribers are automatically granted access to Sky Go, the broadcaster's live streaming platform. Sky Go can be accessed via a web browser or downloaded as a program to your desktop. It's also available in the app store of almost every mobile device from phones to TVs. If you have a device connected to the internet, there's a good chance you can get Sky Go on there. Once you do, you'll have access to all the channels you have in your TV package with a user friendly interface which nicely mimics the one found on your set top box. If you have Sky Sports you'll find all the channels that you have and be able to live stream matches from the Premier League, the EFL, the Carabao Cup, popular fan channels MUTV and LFCTV and more.
Sky Go is available to all Sky TV customers at no extra cost. The only downside is that as yet there is no option for one to purchase Sky Go without a TV sub. Perhaps something for them to think about in the future.
A Sky customer? See what Sky Go has to offer.
Not a Sky customer yet? Get Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Football for £22 a month. Check out what other Sky Sports offers they have.
BT Sport App
The BT Sport app is a dedicated live streaming platform purely for sports fans. The leg up it has on Sky Go is that this app can be accessed by anyone, not only existing customers. You don't need to have a BT broadband or BT subscription of any kind. You can join today and get only the app. This is the perfect option for a young football fan who rarely watches traditional TV, needs an online option and doesn't want lots of other non-sport related channels. Not only that but BT Sport is absolutely crushing it in terms of the line-up. They have the Premier League, all UEFA competitions (Champions League, Europa League, Conference League), and even Serie A and Ligue 1. There's so much football to watch on the BT Sport app and you don't even need to be a customer. You can pay £25 for the BT Sport Monthly Pass which enables you to stream football (and other sports) via the app or also their web player on a browser. There's no contract, no existing subs needed - total freedom and convenience.
Premier Player
With your domestic football pretty much covered by Sky Sports and BT Sport, and some European leagues under the BT umbrella, enter Premier Player with La Liga. Brought to you by Premier Sports, the Premier Player is available from £12.99 a month and can be downloaded to most mobile devices. It's half the price of the big two and for that you can get some cracking football. Not only is Premier Player the best option for the Spanish top flight, they also have the rights to live stream the DFB Pokal, the Scottish Cup, Coppa Italia and the MLS. This option is certainly one for the football connoisseur looking for something a little different at a cut price. These competitions, as well as much more sport, are available on the four channels provided by the player which are Premier Sports 1, Premier Sports 2, La Liga TV and Box Nation. There's also an opportunity to get La Liga TV alone through the Premier Player for only £7.99 a month. As opposed to some other deals which are expensive and bloated with content you don't really want, the avid Spanish football fan can zero in on exactly what they want and get it at a cheap price. Just like the BT Sport app, the Premier Player is available as a standalone product. You don't need to have Sky Sports on your TV or Premier Sports on your TV, you can just get the player - fantastic flexibility!
EFL iFollow
iFollow is the EFL's dedicated service for live streaming. During the pandemic, when stadiums were closed, the service allowed fans to follow their teams from home. Now things are back to normal, iFollow has returned to its previous model as a place to listen to matches with their audio passes, watch some selected matches which don't clash with Sky Sports' broadcasting deal, and crucially allow all overseas subscribers to watch every match with video passes. Traditionally the service was designed to allow a Port Vale fan living in Spain or a Bolton Wanderers fan living in the US to keep up with their clubs. Well through the magic of a VPN you could enjoy this service in your own home from the UK. Simply change your location, head to the iFollow website, click your team from the drop down and see the options available for video and audio passes.
We reviewed EFL iFollow during the pandemic. It's true that the user experience is not the most fluid. There isn't an app or program. It's designed to be watched via a web browser, meaning that it's not super compatible with TVs and mobile devices. However, we managed to watch it via the silk browser of an Amazon fire stick and when the window was full screened it worked well enough. Despite its foibles and room for improvement, iFollow has to make the list because for many it is the only way they can follow their beloved lower league clubs which rarely get TV time, for many it is a vital connection with their communities.
Bet 365
One of the absolute best options out there for live streaming football is with Bet 365. If you open an account, or already have one, you can live stream thousands of sporting events, including football from Europe's biggest leagues for a lot less money than you would spend on every other platform on this list. The only criteria you need to meet is to a) to have placed a bet of any kind within the last 24 hours or b) have money in your account, so theoretically you can open an account, pop a fiver in and you're all set to watch your team's matches via live stream. It really is that simple. The world's favourite online betting brand has access to most of Europe's domestic leagues including La Liga, Ligue 1 and Serie A. You can access their live streams from their website in a browser or via their app on most mobile devices. The only thing they lack is an app for TVs and consoles but in terms of laptops, tablets and phones, they are a fantastic choice. Simply login or create an account, make a small deposit, navigate to the match you want to watch and click the small video icon next to it. You're ready to enjoy live streaming.
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