How to Watch the 2026 FIFA World Cup for Free (or Cheaper)

Posted on by

The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off today, with matches taking place in stadiums across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and the final scheduled for July 19. A record 48 teams will participate in 104 matches spanning over five weeks.

In the US, World Cup matches are broadcast on Fox and FS1 in English, and on Telemundo and Universo in Spanish, so if you have cable TV or a streaming service with these channels, you don’t need to watch anything else. If not, there are other ways to watch, some practically free.

How to watch the FIFA World Cup for free

In the US, there isn’t a single streaming service that’s completely free for the 2026 World Cup, although free trials are available (which we’ll discuss below). Tubi will broadcast the opening ceremony and the first two matches: Mexico vs. South Africa on June 11 and the USA vs. Paraguay on June 12.

You may also like

Alternatively, you can use a reliable VPN to watch free streams from around the world. BBC iPlayer and ITVX (UK), as well as SBS on Demand (Australia), are good options, though there are also streams from several other European countries . FIFA apparently understands that many will be watching matches this way – ExpressVPN (also ranked one of the best VPNs of 2026 by our sister site CNET) is an official FIFA partner for the 2026 World Cup and is running a number of related promotions .

Finally, a relatively free option is to use over-the-air television. You’ll need to purchase a digital antenna and have good reception. You can check the digital television coverage map on the FCC website to find out what signal strength is available in your area.

Watch the FIFA World Cup on Fox One.

Fox One is Fox’s own streaming service, and you can watch all the matches there. A three-day free trial is offered, after which you’ll pay $20 per month. It’s a very affordable option if you’re only interested in watching the World Cup and Fox content.

Subscribe to a streaming service to watch the FIFA World Cup.

If you don’t already have a TV streaming subscription, you can try it out during the World Cup. Many services offer free trials of varying lengths, after which you can pay for a month and then cancel. Be sure to check the channel listings to ensure Fox and FS1 (and/or Telemundo and Universo) are available in your region.

What do you think at the moment?

  • YouTube TV: YouTube TV is a great option for sports fans, and there’s a 10-day free trial available right now. After that, you’ll pay $68 per month for the full channel bundle or $55 for the sports plan.

  • Hulu + Live TV: $90/month , 3-day free trial.

  • DirecTV Stream: $50 per month, five-day free trial.

  • Fubo TV: $46/month with current promotion, 5-day free trial.

Watch the Spanish-language broadcast on Peacock.

Peacock streams all Telemundo matches with Spanish commentary (audio and subtitles). A premium subscription to the streaming service costs $11 per month. If you have an Instacart+ or Walmart+ subscription, you can access Peacock for free.

When will the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches take place?

The tournament kicks off on June 11, with the group stage running until June 27. After that, the playoff rounds will begin:

  • Round of 32: June 28 – July 3

  • Round of 16: July 4–7

  • Quarterfinals: July 9–11

  • Semi-finals: July 14 and 15.

  • Third place match: July 18

  • Final: July 19

The final match will take place at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

More…

Streaming

Leave a Reply