How to watch FIFA World Cup 2026 free from anywhere in the world with this VPN deal

FIFA World Cup Trophy is displayed during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Official Draw at John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on December 05, 2025 in Washington, DC.
(Image credit: Getty IMandel NGAN - Pool/Getty Images)

Top-ranked Spain, Kylian Mbappe's France, Lionel Messi's Argentina and Jude Bellingham's England will enter the 2026 FIFA World Cup as favorites this summer, a tournament that's been expanded to such an extent that viewers are going to end up putting a bigger shift in than the players themselves.

Six games are scheduled to take place on some days, from the small hours of the morning to well beyond bedtime depending on where you live.

We're also going to see 13 different kick-off times in total, because the 16 venues – stretching from Vancouver's BC Place in the north to Mexico City's Estadio Banorte in the south, from Santa Clara's Levi's Stadium in the west to Boston's Gillette Stadium in the east – cover three countries and four time zones. Extreme weather will likely force 11th-hour changes to the schedule too.

Not only has the tournament been expanded from 32 to 48 teams, but the eight best third-placed teams will also join the top two from each group in the new round of 32. That means after 72 group stage games, only 16 teams will fail to reach the knockouts.

In the US tradition, it's going to be supersized. If you're frozen by the sheer scale of it, read on for a couple of tips that will make the undertaking a little less daunting.

All 104 games of the tournament are free-to-air in the UK and Australia. Traveling away from home? A good VPN will let you tap into that free FIFA World Cup coverage from anywhere – and one of our favourites Norton VPN has a 60-day money back guarantee.

Can I stream FIFA World Cup 2026 for free?

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be streamed live and free in many countries around the world, with the best English-language coverage available in the UK and Australia.

🇬🇧 UK: ITVX & BBC iPlayer (every game)
🇦🇺 Australia: SBS on Demand (every game)

Traveling abroad during the World Cup? You can use a VPN to watch all the action free of charge as if you were right at home. Norton VPN is our top pick of the options.

Use a VPN to watch any FIFA World Cup 2026 stream

Why is a VPN a good option to watch FIFA World Cup 2026?

Taking place across six weeks in June and July, FIFA World Cup 2026 coincides with peak summer vacation season. Unfortunately, you may find that your usual streaming options are geoblocked while you’re away.

That’s where a VPN comes in handy – not only does it let you access your home streaming services from anywhere, but it also protects you from potential online threats. We recommend Norton VPN – it does everything and will unblock any free streaming service for you to watch the action.

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Norton VPN is fast, reliable and packed with useful features, with server locations worldwide. Its Ultimate plan is especially great value, protecting up to 20 devices under one subscription.

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What devices are supported by BBC iPlayer, ITVX, SBS on Demand and Norton VPN?

Amazon Fire Stick (Fire OS 8 and up)
Android (Android 10.0 and up)
Android TV / Google TV (Android TV OS 10.0 and up)
iOS (latest 2 versions)
iPadOS (latest 2 versions)
Web browsers (Chrome, Edge, Firefox)

What is the FIFA World Cup 2026 schedule?

(All times BST)

GROUP STAGE

Thursday, June 11
8pm – Mexico vs South Africa | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Friday, June 12
3am – South Korea vs Czech Republic | ITVX, SBS on Demand
8pm – Canada vs Bosnia & Herzegovina | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Saturday, June 13
2am – USA vs Paraguay | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
8pm – Qatar vs Switzerland | ITVX, SBS on Demand
11pm – Brazil vs Morocco | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Sunday, June 14
2am – Haiti vs Scotland | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
5am – Australia vs Turkey | ITVX, SBS on Demand
6pm – Germany vs Curacao | ITVX, SBS on Demand
9pm – Netherlands vs Japan | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Monday, June 15
12am – Ivory Coast vs Ecuador | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
3am – Sweden vs Tunisia | ITVX, SBS on Demand
5pm – Spain vs Cape Verde | ITVX, SBS on Demand
8pm – Belgium vs Egypt | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
11pm – Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Tuesday, June 16
2am – Iran vs New Zealand | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
8pm – France vs Senegal | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
11pm – Iraq vs Norway | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Wednesday, June 17
2am – Argentina vs Algeria | ITVX, SBS on Demand
5am – Austria vs Jordan | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
6pm – Portugal vs DR Congo | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
9pm – England vs Croatia | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Thursday, June 18
12am – Ghana vs Panama | ITVX, SBS on Demand
3am – Uzbekistan vs Colombia | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
5pm – Czech Republic vs South Africa | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
8pm – Switzerland vs Bosnia & Herzegovina | ITVX, SBS on Demand
11pm – Canada vs Qatar | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Friday, June 19
2am – Mexico vs South Korea | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
8pm – USA vs Australia | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
11pm – Scotland vs Morocco | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Saturday, June 20
2am – Brazil vs Haiti | ITVX, SBS on Demand
5am – Turkey vs Paraguay | ITVX, SBS on Demand
6pm – Netherlands vs Sweden | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
9pm – Germany vs Ivory Coast | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Sunday, June 21
1am – Ecuador vs Curacao | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
5am – Tunisia vs Japan | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
5pm – Spain vs Saudi Arabia | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
8pm – Belgium vs Iran | ITVX, SBS on Demand
11pm – Uruguay vs Cape Verde | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Monday, June 22
2am – New Zealand vs Egypt | ITVX, SBS on Demand
6pm – Argentina vs Austria | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
10pm – France vs Iraq | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Tuesday, June 23
1am – Norway vs Senegal | ITVX, SBS on Demand
4am – Jordan vs Algeria | ITVX, SBS on Demand
6pm – Portugal vs Uzbekistan | ITVX, SBS on Demand
9pm – England vs Ghana | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Wednesday, June 24
12am – Panama vs Croatia | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
3am – Colombia vs DR Congo | ITVX, SBS on Demand
8pm – Switzerland vs Canada | ITVX, SBS on Demand
8pm – Bosnia & Herzegovina vs Qatar | ITVX, SBS on Demand
11pm – Morocco vs Haiti | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
11pm – Scotland vs Brazil | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Thursday, June 25
2am – South Africa vs South Korea | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
2am – Czech Republic vs Mexico | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
9pm – Curacao vs Ivory Coast | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
9pm – Ecuador vs Germany | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

Friday, June 26
12am – Tunisia vs Netherlands | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
12am – Japan vs Sweden | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
3am – Turkey vs USA | ITVX, SBS on Demand
3am – Paraguay vs Australia | ITVX, SBS on Demand
8pm – Norway vs France | ITVX, SBS on Demand
8pm – Senegal vs Iraq | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Saturday, June 27
1am – Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia | ITVX, SBS on Demand
1am – Uruguay vs Spain | ITVX, SBS on Demand
4am – New Zealand vs Belgium | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
4am – Egypt vs Iran | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
10pm – Panama vs England | ITVX, SBS on Demand
10pm – Croatia vs Ghana | ITVX, SBS on Demand

Sunday, June 28
12.30am – Colombia vs Portugal | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
12.30am – DR Congo vs Uzbekistan | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
3am – Algeria vs Austria | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand
3am – Jordan vs Argentina | BBC iPlayer, SBS on Demand

KNOCKOUT STAGE

ROUND OF 32

Sunday, June 28
8pm – A2 vs B2

Monday, June 29
6pm – C1 vs F2
9.30pm – E1 vs A/B/C/D/F3

Tuesday, June 30
2am – F1 vs C2
6pm – E2 vs I2
10pm – I1 vs C/D/F/G/H3

Wednesday, July 1
2am – A1 vs C/E/F/H/I3
5pm – L1 vs E/H/I/J/K3
9pm – G1 vs A/E/H/I/J3

Thursday, July 2
1am – D1 vs B/E/F/I/J3
8pm – H1 vs J2

Friday, July 3
12am – K2 vs L2
4am – B1 vs E/F/G/I/J3
7pm – D2 vs G2
11pm – J1 vs H2

Saturday, July 4
2.30am – K1 vs D/E/I/J/L3

ROUND OF 16

Saturday, July 4
6pm – Round of 16 game 1
10pm – Round of 16 game 2

Sunday, July 5
9pm – Round of 16 game 3

Monday, July 6
1am – Round of 16 game 4
8pm – Round of 16 game 5

Tuesday, July 7
1am – Round of 16 game 6
5pm – Round of 16 game 7
9pm – Round of 16 game 8

QUARTER-FINALS

Thursday, July 9
9pm – Quarter-final 1

Friday, July 10
8pm – Quarter-final 2

Saturday, July 11
10pm – Quarter-final 3

Sunday, July 12
2am – Quarter-final 4

SEMI-FINALS

Tuesday, July 14
8pm – Semi-final 1

Wednesday, July 15
8pm – Semi-final 2

FINALS

Saturday, July 18
10pm – Third-place playoff

Sunday, July 19
8pm – 2026 FIFA World Cup final

What are the FIFA World Cup 2026 groups?

Group A
Mexico
South Africa
South Korea
Czechia

Group B
Canada
Qatar
Switzerland
Bosnia & Herzegovina

Group C
Brazil
Morocco
Haiti
Scotland

Group D
USA
Paraguay
Australia
Turkey

Group E
Germany
Curacao
Ivory Coast
Ecuador

Group F
Netherlands
Japan
Tunisia
Sweden

Group G
Belgium
Egypt
Iran
New Zealand

Group H
Spain
Cape Verde
Saudi Arabia
Uruguay

Group I
France
Senegal
Norway
Iraq

Group J
Argentina
Algeria
Austria
Jordan

Group K
Portugal
Uzbekistan
Colombia
DR Congo

Group L
England
Croatia
Ghana
Panama

Disclaimer

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

Aatif Sulleyman

Aatif is a freelance copywriter and journalist based in the UK. He’s written about technology, science and politics for publications including Gizmodo, The Independent, Trusted Reviews and Newsweek, but focuses on streaming at Future, an arrangement that combines two of his greatest passions: sport and penny-pinching.

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