The NFL season is in full swing and UK fans are arguably having it better than Americans when it comes to watching the sport on TV and online.
While US viewers have to browse through a number of different providers and streaming services to watch every game, UK viewers have a relatively simple choice of ways to watch the sport.
After the LA Rams won the Super Bowl last season in Matt Stafford’s first season with the team, and an exciting off-season that somehow saw Jimmy Garopollo stay with the San Francisco 49ers as a QB relief (and now the starter again), 2022 is looking like a hotly contested year. Here’s everything you need to know to watch the NFL in the UK.
When does the 2022 NFL season end?
The 2022/23 season kicked off on September 8 and will run for 18 matchweeks, ending on January 8, 2023. This is followed by the playoffs, before having the 2023 Super Bowl on February 12. There are 17 regular season games for each team as they get a bye (one week off).
Where to watch the NFL in the US without cable
This guide is mainly focused on the UK, but if you’re in the land of the free, watching the NFL can be a bit of a pain as it airs on so many channels including Fox Sports, NBC, CBS, ESPN, ABC, NFL Network and, more recently, streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Having all of that to catch every match might be too difficult and expensive, but you have a few neater options.
NFL+ is the official streaming service (called Game Pass in the UK) and brings live local and primetime games (regular, post-season and Super Bowl) to your phone or tablet. Replays are available if you subscribe to the NFL+ Premium subscription.
The service costs from $4.99 per month and you can enjoy a 7-day free trial.
Another option you have without the need for cable, which many people don’t realize, is the NFL RedZone which provides league round highlights as they happen on Sundays.
This is separate from NFL+ and is part of the main NFL app on iPhone or Android. There are TV options including SlingTV and YouTube, but if watching on your phone is enough, it’s only $34.99 for the entire season. To learn more, check out our comprehensive guide to TechHive.
Alternatively, the easiest and cheapest way to get NFL games on any TV is to use a digital antenna. If you’re near a metropolitan area, CBS, Fox, NBC, and CBS show games every Sunday, and you can watch them for free, but without any of the modern perks like taping or pausing, of course.
Which NFL games are on UK TV?
We’ll explain how to watch the NFL in the UK through various providers below. But first, let’s look at which games will be shown on UK TV, between Sky and Channel 5.
We’ll update this weekly so you know what’s streaming live.
Note that because some games are around 1am in the UK, that means the date is technically the next day in Blighty. So, for example, Thursday night games actually take place in the early hours of Friday.
Week 14 Games
Fri 9 Dec
- Las Vegas Raiders @ Los Angeles Rams – 1:15 a.m. – Sky Sports NFL/Main Event
Sun 11 Dec
- Philadelphia Eagles @ New York Giants – 6 p.m. – Sky Sports NFL
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ San Francisco 49ers – 9:25 p.m. – Sky Sports NFL
Mon 12 Dec
- Miami Dolphins @ Los Angeles Chargers – 1h20 – Sky Sports NFL & Main Event
Tue 13 Dec
- New England Patriots @ Arizona Cardinals – 1:15 a.m. – Sky Sports NFL/Main Event and Channel 5
Watch the NFL on Sky Sports
As you might have already guessed, Sky is once again the main place to watch the NFL in the UK this season. These days, the broadcaster even has a dedicated Sky Sports NFL channel (Sky 407 / Virgin Media 507).
In addition to extensive general sports coverage, the channel will broadcast a minimum of five live matches each week, including the following and additional coverage:
- At least five live games per week for 18 weeks
- Monday and Thursday night football
- Selection of Sunday evening matches
- NFL Red Zone Live
- Live Fantasy
- Hello Soccer
- Full access
- Hard Knocks (Detroit Lions)
sky sports
So if you’re a Sky Q customer with Sky Sports, just tune into the NFL channel when the games are on to watch them live (see the schedule above to see which games are on). You can also watch via Sky Go.
However, Sky has other ways to watch if you don’t want to be a full satellite customer. You can watch on a wide range of devices, including smartphones and consoles via Now (formerly called Now TV) with a Now Sports subscription (formerly called Sky Sports Pass).
These start at £11.98 for a sports day (24 hours) and include 8 months of Sports Mobile access which you’ll get within 10 days of signing up. You might be better off getting the monthly pass if you plan on watching a lot of games. It’s £33.99 per month and includes a 7-day free trial of Now Boost
Note that you’ll need Now Boost (normally £5 per month) to watch in Full HD quality with Dolby 5.1 surround sound. It also takes the number of devices you can simultaneously stream to three (normally two).
See all Now TV passes here.
Live stream on NFL Game Pass
NFL Game Pass is the UK’s official online sports streaming service – much like Netflix just for American football. It lets you watch games live or on demand throughout the season and is available on the web or through various devices with the app.
Unfortunately, the free plan is gone, but you can try a 7-day free trial of the Pro plan. It’s the one hardcore fans will want to get and costs £150.99 for the whole season, which can be paid for in four instalments. Alternatively, there’s a weekly option for £14.99.
This includes everything you could want, including over 270 live games as well as full game replays (minus the ads) on demand. There’s also the Super Bowl, Coaches Film and more. Just note that live games are hidden (unavailable) on Game Pass if shown on Sky Sports.
Alternatively, the Essential plan is £42.99 for the season and includes things like NFL RedZone, condensed 40-minute game highlights and NFL Original broadcasts.
Check out all the plans on the NFL Game Pass website.
NFL Game Pass
Watch the NFL on Channel 5
Anyone who has followed the NFL from the UK for a long time will remember watching games on Channel 5.
After a hiatus since 2009, the channel returned to action for the 2020/21 season and is once again showing live American football for 2022/23. You’ll need to make the coffee though – it will only be Monday night matches, with coverage starting at 1am on Tuesday morning UK time.
Still, you can put it on the record if you don’t fancy splashing out on Sky, as Channel 5 is a free channel.
At a more sociable hour is a show called NFL End Zone. It airs Sunday mornings at 10:30 a.m. presented by American actress and singer Cori Yarckin and team.
Watch the NFL on ITV
After seven years with the BBC, NFL coverage moved to ITV.
There’s not much to say though as the channel only airs The NFL Show on Fridays at 11:30 p.m. Essentially carrying the BBC schedule, regulars Jason Bell and Osi Umenyiora will bring you “the latest stories and league news” every week, only with a new host in the form of Laura Woods.
TVI
ITV will also show the Super Bowl on February 12 and has shown two of the NFL’s games in London this season: the Giants vs. Packers and the Jaguars vs. Broncos.
Watch the NFL in the UK with a VPN
Services like Sky Go and BBC iPlayer are geo-restricted outside the UK, but that doesn’t mean you can’t watch the NFL when you’re abroad.
All you have to do is download and use a VPN service such as NordVPN which will mask your IP address and make the app appear that you are actually in the UK. You can then browse Sky’s services in your web browser and watch whatever you want.
Of course, you can also use the same trick to appear to be browsing from the US and accessing US services – but as we said above, you might find it easier and cheaper to watch sports from the UK anyway.
Read our guide to what a VPN is and which are the best VPNs.
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