– BC Soccer Web
Finding your match on TV or online in Canada has become more difficult in recent years. League broadcast rights change hands, new online services pop up, and some leagues and channels vanish from our screens altogether. The 2018/19 season is shaping up to be the most confusing of all for many.
Fear not! BC Soccer Web has got you covered! We’ve made our way through the web of cable channels and online services available so you can watch the matches you want. You may need to subscribe to more than one channel or service to get it, but for the first time it’s now possible to get legitimate, safe streams of matches from most major leagues without a cable subscription. You may already have access to a channel’s online streaming service if you subscribe to their cable channel.
When trying out a new online service, it’s always a good idea to use a free trial offer or subscribe for only one month to see if it’s right for you. Most of the bigger online services have apps for streaming devices such as Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Playstation 4 & Xbox One.
Here are your options by Tournament and Country:
UEFA Champions League & Europa League
Online only: DAZN – $20 per month
The new online streaming service DAZN sent shockwaves through the Canadian broadcast market by capturing exclusive, multi-year rights to the Champions League & Europa League. They plan to livestream every match from both tournaments, along with other events and programs from UEFA over the course of their deal. They’ve said that they have no plans to sublease any of the matches to TV services like TSN or Sportsnet, but that could always change. For now, these two major events can only be accessed online.
England:
The most popular foreign football for Canadians is the Premier League. It’s also the most expensive to access, requiring subscriptions to as many as four services for complete coverage. The good news is that it is possible to have access to every live match in the Premier League.
Here’s the breakdown:
Premier League on TV in Canada:
Every match is available on these services
Cable:
Sportsnet (all four regional channels) , Sportsnet One & Sportsnet World – 190 matches
TSN 1,2,3,4,5 – All remaining matches.
Seattle’s NBC affiliate KING 5 often shows one Premier League match every weekend, as well.
Online:
Sportsnet Now – $24.95 per month
TSN Direct – $24.99 per month
The FA Cup:
Cable TV: Sportsnet World (Selected matches)
Online: Sportsnet Now (Selected matches)
Caribao Cup (English League Cup):
Online only: DAZN (Selected matches) – $20 per month
EFL Championship & lower leagues:
Online only: DAZN (Selected matches) – $20 per month
DAZN shows selected Championship matches every weekend as well as occassional League 1 & League 2 matches throughout the season. It’s also the only way to watch promotion playoffs at the end of the season.
Italy
Serie A:
Online: DAZN – $20 per month
DAZN captured the rights to Serie A recently and will show every match. The online service is now your only option to watch the Italian top flight with English language commentary. However, there is an Italian-language cable option for Serie A fans:
Cable: RAI International
RAI continues to serve up major Serie A matches and some Serie B in Italian to Canadian homes on their SD-only specialty channel. While the visual quality of the broadcasts may be lacking, their dramatic presentation on Sunday mornings is still unmatched with the iconic La Giostra dei Gol program.
Spain:
La Liga & Copa Del Rey
Cable: beIN Sport
Online:
DAZN – $20 per month
beIN Connect – $19.95 per month
FuboTV – $15.95 per month
DAZN announced that they will once again have La Liga matches on their system by August 26, making it the most cost-effective option. beIn Connect offers all La Liga matches live on their mutiple-channel online system. The other option, Fubo TV, only brings you LaLiga matches broadcast on their main cable channel.
Germany:
Bundesliga:
Cable: Sportsnet World & Sportsnet
Please note, the status of whether there will be German Cup matches available is unclear at the moment.
The more expensive Sportsnet World service has the most Bundesliga coverage. However some matches make their way to the regional Sportsnet channels as well.
Another option for occasional Bundesliga matches is Seattle’s Fox affiliate KCPQ. Fox owns the U.S. rights to the German top flight, and sometimes puts the biggest matches on “Free” tv.
Online:
Sportsnet Now – $24.95 per month
The online service Sportsnet Now has over 300 Bundesliga matches, including all Bayern Munich matches.
France:
Ligue 1
Cable: beIN Sport
beIN Sport shows major Ligue 1 matches live on its cable channel with English commentary. They also show other matches on a delayed basis. There is also a French language alternative for Ligue 1:
TV5 – The French international service shows at least one Ligue 1 match every weekend, as well as some French Cup and national team matches. The good news is TV5 is often included as part of most basic cable packages.
Online:
DAZN – $20 per month
beIN Connect – $19.95 per month
FuboTV – $15.95 per month
DAZN announced that they will once again have Ligue 1 matches on their system by August 26, making it the most cost-effective option. beIn Connect offers all Ligue 1 matches live on their mutiple-channel online system. The other option, Fubo TV, only brings you Ligue 1 matches broadcast on their main cable channel.
Other Leagues & Competitions:
Scotland: Sportsnet World & Sportsnet Now (Selected matches)
Turkey: beIN Sport, beIN Sport Connect
Japan: DAZN
AFC Champions League: DAZN
Portugal: GolTV Play
Mexico: Univision Canada (Very occasional matches)
South America:
The online service Fanatiz owns Canadian rights to the largest competitions in South America.
Copa Libertadores
Copa Sudamericana
Superliga Argentina
Copa Argentina
Brasileirao
Chilean First Division
Copa Chile
GolTV Play also gives you subscription options to the top leagues in Ecuador and Uruguay.