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Key Takeaways: How to Watch the NFL in Europe & Abroad
- If you travel outside the United States, connect to a VPN server in the U.S. to continue using streaming platforms that broadcast NFL games.
- Alternatively, you can tune into streaming services that are available in Europe like the NFL Game Pass. If you travel outside Europe, connect to a VPN in the country associated with your streaming account to continue accessing it.
- ExpressVPN is the best VPN for streaming NFL games abroad, but NordVPN is a cheaper alternative.
Best VPNs For Streaming the NFL from Abroad
- ExpressVPN — The Best VPN overall due to its extensive feature-set, great security and privacy record and robust streaming performance.
- NordVPN — One of the fastest VPNs around with affordable long-term plans.
National Football League (NFL) games are so popular that there’s no shortage of streaming platforms catering to both U.S. and international audiences. This is great news, but geoblocking can sometimes pose a problem. Stay tuned to learn how to watch the NFL in Europe and how to use a VPN to get around regional restrictions.
Unfortunately, even with all the options available, tuning into NFL games isn’t as simple as choosing any streaming service you like. The platforms that host NFL streams differ by country, and they’re all regionally restricted, which means they’re unavailable in certain locations.
While this can be frustrating — especially if you travel often — you can use a secure VPN provider like ExpressVPN to circumvent these issues.
Using a virtual private network (VPN) is very straightforward, and we’ll show you how it works further down. Meanwhile, let’s explore all the different ways to watch NFL games in the U.S., Europe and abroad.
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Learn more about our editorial team and our research process.
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09/05/2022
Updated the guide to show how to stream the NFL 2022 season.
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11/30/2023
Updated the article to reflect ExpressVPN’s expansion of server presence from 94 to 105 countries.
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02/10/2024
We have rewritten this guide to include information on where you can stream the NFL in Europe and how you can use free streaming services to watch select games from anywhere.
- updates
How to Watch NFL Games Online From Anywhere
As mentioned in the intro, the service you’ll use to watch NFL games will depend on where you are. In addition to geoblocking, many platforms have payment restrictions to prevent users who don’t have a payment method linked to the country offering the service at signup. To keep things simple, we’ll go country by country to explain all you need to know.
United States
- YouTube TV — Covers local games, NFL Network games, and Sunday and Monday Night Football
- NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV — Covers out-of-market Sunday games and offers NFL RedZone coverage (select plans only)
- Hulu + Live TV — Covers local games, NFL Network games, and Sunday and Monday Night Football, and offers NFL RedZone coverage (available with the “Sports” add-on)
- fuboTV — Covers local games, NFL Network games, and Sunday and Monday Night Football, and offers NFL RedZone coverage (available with the “Sports Plus” add-on)
- Paramount Plus — Covers local CBS games
- Peacock Premium — Covers Sunday Night Football
- Sling TV — Covers local FOX games (select markets), NFL games, Sunday Night Football (select markets) and Monday Night Football, and offers NFL RedZone coverage (available with the “Sports Extra” package)
- Amazon Prime Video — Covers Thursday Night Football
- ESPN+ — Covers Monday Night Football (select games only)
NFL coverage is distributed across CBS, FOX and Paramount Plus (in-market games); NFL Sunday Ticket (out-of-market games); Amazon Prime Video (Thursday Night Football); NBC and Peacock (Sunday Night Football); and ESPN, ESPN2, ABC and ESPN+ (Monday Night Football). Then, there’s the NFL Network, which hosts select preseason games.
For this reason, some cord-cutting sports fans opt for a live TV streaming service that carries CBS, FOX, ESPN, NBC and ABC for the most extensive coverage. YouTube TV offers the “NFL Sunday Ticket” add-on, which allows you to watch out-of-market games. Check the section below to learn about NFL+.
If you travel abroad, you’ll need a VPN to continue using these platforms. Live TV services like Hulu + Live TV typically make you check in on your home network every 30 days or so to continue using them. If you’re traveling for a short time and have recently checked in, you should be fine. If you can’t check in on your home network, see our Hulu guide to learn how to bypass the restriction.
What Is NFL+?
NFL+ is the official streaming service for the National Football League. It’s only available in the United States, so if you’re in another country, check out the next section on the NFL Game Pass.
There are two NFL+ subscription tiers: NFL+ and NFL+ Premium. With an NFL+ subscription, you can access live local and primetime games, live out-of-market preseason games, the NFL Network, live game audio, NFL films, Fantasy+ and ad-free highlights. The NFL+ tier costs $6.99 per month.
The NFL+ Premium tier comes with all the features included in the NFL+ tier, but you also gain access to NFL RedZone and game replays. This tier costs $14.99 per month.
Just bear in mind that you can only watch the live local, primetime regular season and postseason games on a phone or tablet. Check if your device is compatible with the app on the NFL+ website. You can watch other content, including the NFL Network and NFL RedZone (premium only), on a PC and TV as well as a phone or tablet.
Canada
- TSN.ca/TSN app
- DAZN Canada
Luckily, for those in Canada, NFL content is all in one place. DAZN — a sports streaming service available in several countries — is the place to watch all NFL content in Canada. You can also watch primetime games (Monday, Thursday and Sunday) on TSN.ca or the TSN app if you’re a cable subscriber.
If you’d prefer to watch them on TV, you can tune in to TSN, RDS, CTV and CTV 2. TSN+ subscribers can access NFL RedZone to watch every touchdown on Sunday afternoons and one exclusive game every week (regular season games).
If you travel outside Canada and can’t access DAZN Canada or TSN.ca, connect to a Canadian server on a VPN before launching the service. This changes your IP address to a Canadian one.
United Kingdom
- NFL Game Pass (DAZN)
- My5 (Channel 5)
- NOW
In the U.K., you can get the DAZN NFL Game Pass International — see the section below for details — which is available in over 150 countries (excluding the U.S. and China). Just remember that one or two Sunday games won’t be streamed live in the U.K. and will only be available on demand 24 hours later.
Another option is to subscribe to the British streaming service NOW, which gives you access to all Sky Sports channels, including Sky Sports NFL. It also allows you to stream on your TV, PC or mobile device. Monday Night Football games are broadcast on Channel 5, so you can watch these for free on its streaming platform, My5.
France
- NFL Game Pass (DAZN)
- 6play
- beIN SPORTS
To stream the games online in France, you can subscribe either to the NFL Game Pass via DAZN or to beIN Sports’ 100% digital package. You can also head to 6play, which has a livestream every Sunday at 19:00 CET. If you’re outside France, you can use a VPN to sign up for a free account and stream on 6play. Just keep in mind that the commentary is in French.
Spain
- NFL Game Pass (DAZN)
- Movistar Plus+
In Spain, Movistar Plus+ is the official NFL platform, so you can stream all the games there and get access to NFL RedZone, which is broadcast on Sunday afternoons. Alternatively, you can subscribe to the NFL Game Pass through DAZN. If you travel outside Spain, you can still access your Movistar Plus+ or DAZN accounts by connecting to a Spanish server on a VPN.
How to Stream NFL Games in Other Countries
As mentioned further up, the NFL Game Pass is available in many countries except the U.S. and China, so it’s an option worth considering. That said, in addition to those listed above, you can also stream NFL games online outside the U.S. on the following platforms:
- 7plus (Australia) — Provides streaming for Sunday games
- RTL+ & Nitro (Germany) — Offers at least two free livestreams every Sunday
You can access the above services from outside these two countries by connecting to a German or Australian VPN server.
What Is the NFL Game Pass International?
If you aren’t in the U.S., we recommend looking into the NFL Game Pass International, which is provided by the streaming service DAZN.
The game pass allows you to watch all the games live (preseason, regular season and Super Bowl LVIII included). With the exception of the U.K. and Ireland, there aren’t any blackouts with the international game pass.
In addition to the games, a subscription gets you NFL RedZone and NFL Network coverage as well as NFL Originals and DAZN content. The pricing varies by country, but to give you a few examples, it costs £150.00 (around $190) in the U.K., €198.99 (around $215) in France and MXN 2,500.00 (around $145) in Mexico for the full season. There’s also a free trial available.
If you have a valid payment method for a country that has a cheaper game pass but you aren’t currently located there, connect to a VPN server in that country before you sign up and pay.
Will There Be NFL Blackouts Outside the U.S.?
Your DAZN account is tied to the region you created it in.
Yes, during the regular season, those with a game pass in the U.K. or Ireland will have to wait 24 hours to stream two games per week on demand instead of live. The affected games are typically selected by Wednesday each week, and you can check DAZN’s blackouts information page to learn which games will be blacked out.
Unfortunately, when you sign up for DAZN, your account is tied to the location you used to register, so a VPN won’t help you get around these blackouts.
For example, if you signed up in the U.K., you’ll only be able to access DAZN if you’re in the U.K. or connected to a British VPN server while abroad. This means you can’t connect to another country to bypass the blackouts. If you try to access your NFL Game Pass from another country, you might see an error message and have to contact DAZN customer support.
However, those in the U.S. can get around blackouts by connecting to a U.S. server in a different state where the game isn’t blacked out.
How to Stream NFL Games Abroad With a VPN
If you’re traveling or want to access an NFL livestream on a platform that’s unavailable in your country, you can change your IP address with a VPN.
For this example, we’ll use My5 (Channel 5) — which is free but only available in the U.K. — to watch Monday Night Football streams. However, you can also use a VPN to access DAZN (see above for details), U.S. live TV streaming services or any other platform you have an account with.
- Subscribe to a VPN
Settle on a VPN provider (recommendations below) and head to the provider’s website to select a plan. You can get a 30-day money-back guarantee with most VPN services, including ExpressVPN.
- Download the VPN
Download the VPN’s app from the website, or use the Apple app store or Google Play store if you’re using a mobile device.
- Connect to a U.K. Server
Since it’s a British service, you’ll need to connect to a British server (if you’re already in the U.K., you don’t need a VPN to access My5). However, if you want to access a livestream in a different country, then connect to a server in the applicable country.
- Sign Up for My5
Go to My5 to register for a free account. Enter your details and click “create account.”
- Start Streaming
Log in to My5 when it’s time for the game and click “watch now.”
Best VPNs for Watching the NFL Abroad
A reputable VPN can help you bypass blackouts (as shown above), access the NFL Game Pass International while traveling and get you into geoblocked streaming services located outside the U.S. Only some are up to the task, and here are our top picks.
1. ExpressVPN
With its foolproof security, great speeds and ease of use, we
consider ExpressVPN to be the best streaming VPN.
Pros:
- Very fast streaming
- Diverse server selection
- Easy to use
We think there’s no better VPN than ExpressVPN for staying secure online and bypassing geoblocks, whether that’s accessing streaming services in another country or dodging blackouts at home. It’s the most consistent when it comes to unblocking streaming services, and it comes with some of the best speeds and most diverse server selections.
In addition, you simply can’t go wrong with ExpressVPN because it’s set up and organized in a way that’s straightforward for everyone, even if you’re not very tech-savvy. To learn more about ExpressVPN, go to our full ExpressVPN review.
Now, for the not-so-good news: All ExpressVPN plans are expensive, and there are only three to choose from. Fortunately, there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee.
ExpressVPN Plans
2. NordVPN
NordVPN offers a diverse range of plans, some of which only cost a few dollars per month.
Pros:
- Best average speeds
- Affordable long-term plans
- Consistent streaming speed
Cons:
- Certain features are challenging to set up
If ExpressVPN doesn’t float your boat, NordVPN is a great alternative to consider. We always have a positive streaming experience with NordVPN, which may be due in part to its top-notch speeds. NordVPN’s speeds are the best on average, as per our speed test results that we’ve been collecting for quite some time. Pop over to our NordVPN review to learn more.
Another of NordVPN’s strongest points is its pricing and plan flexibility. In addition to taking advantage of the money-back guarantee, you can choose your plan based on any extra features you may need (password manager, data leak analysis, etc.), and the long-term plans are affordable.
In terms of cons, some of NordVPN’s features can be tricky to use, as explained in our best VPN for beginners article.
Can I Use a Free VPN to Stream NFL Games?
Yes, but you have to be careful with free VPNs as some have security and privacy issues. That said, a few safe options include Proton VPN, TunnelBear and Windscribe. The free VPN you opt for will depend on the location of the services you want to access.
With its unlimited data and solid security, Proton VPN is the best free VPN overall — especially for streaming on U.S. services — but there is one caveat.
Originally, the free plan gave you access to three locations (including the U.S.) and let you pick which one to use. Proton VPN recently updated its free plan to include five servers, but it removed the option that allowed you to choose where you connect. Old accounts still have the original three locations and the option to decide which server you want to use.
Windscribe is a better choice for streaming services available in Europe (like My5 and 6play) because it has a better selection of free servers, but you can only stream up to 15GB of data per month.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re in Europe or abroad, football fans have plenty of options for watching the NFL, including some that are completely free. If you travel or want to use a streaming service that’s not available in your country, all you need is a consistent, fast and secure VPN to change your IP.
Which platform do you use to catch NFL games? Will you use a VPN to stream the NFL online? Let us know in the comments. Thanks for reading.
FAQ: Stream NFL Abroad
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It depends on the sport you want to watch, but some are available via international game passes. For example, the NFL and NHL both have streaming services available outside the U.S.
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Yes. The NFL Game Pass International is available in Europe.
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You can watch the NFL in Spain via the DAZN NFL Game Pass or Movistar Plus+.
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You can watch Monday Night Football for free on My5 (Channel 5).
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