Wimbledon 2023 tennis is here and once again the matches are available to watch in Ultra HD 4K resolution. Here’s everything you need to know about live streaming in Ultra HD, including supported devices and minimum internet speeds.
In the UK, where Wimbledon takes place, the BBC has held 4K trials in recent years as well as other events like Euros football. As usual, it’s available in four times the resolution of Full HD if you have the right equipment.
The tournament starts on Monday July 3 and continues until Sunday July 16.
Wimbledon Ultra HD in the UK
If you’re in the UK you can watch matches live in Ultra HD (aka 4K) thanks to the BBC (on BBC One and Two) and while we’re hoping for more coverage than the past two years, it’s still limited to games on center court.
The BBC didn’t announce it in a blog post as usual, but a spokesperson told Tech Advisor: “Just like in previous years, we will have center court matches available in UHD.”
This means you’ll be able to watch Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal, Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina and many more in crisp 4K detail. Of course, the men’s and women’s finals will be broadcast in Ultra HD.
Here is what you need:
- Fairly fast internet
- A compatible 4K TV or streaming device
- A BBC account
- A valid TV license
As for broadband speed, the BBC says it should be 24Mbps for “the full 3840 pixel Ultra HD experience”, or 12Mbps for lower 2560p resolution. Learn how to test your broadband speed.
If your Wi-Fi is unreliable, consider plugging your TV or media player into your router with an Ethernet cable for a better connection. You can also upgrade your home network with a powerline adapter or mesh Wi-Fi network kit.
You’ll also need a compatible TV or media player (if your TV is 4K but not supported itself) and luckily the list is long, including many Samsung, LG, Philips and smart TVs. Hisense 4K.
Supported streamers and set-top boxes include Amazon Fire TV Cube, Virgin Media TiVo, and various Roku models.
Go to the BBC site and click on the manufacturer or search the page for your exact model number. Unfortunately, Sky Q is still not supported, nor can you watch in 4K via a web browser on your phone or laptop.
Note that if you want to watch in HDR, you will need a TV that supports HLG (hybrid log gamma). This is the HDR standard used for iPlayer, so check your TV specs to see if it’s supported.
If you have the right hardware and fast enough speed, all you need to do is open the iPlayer app and find Wimbledon matches via the homepage or the sports section.
Make sure the video quality is on “Best Quality” in the settings menu, and check the iPlayer interface for the little “UHD” icons, so you know it’s Ultra HD.
The good news is that this is no longer an Ultra HD trial, so there’s no limit to how many people can join the 4K stream.
Eurosport have previously broadcast Wimbledon in 4K Ultra HD, and although the channel confirmed it would not be doing the same for 2021 “due to broadcast rights”, the women’s and men’s finals would have been shown in 4K.
It’s unclear what the situation is for 2023, but it seems unlikely with this official blog post not mentioning high resolution at all.
It says “You can watch Wimbledon daily highlights at 10pm on Eurosport 2 and Discovery+ from July 3, as well as the two singles finals live on July 15 and 16.”
Note that for those in Ireland, the tournament has a new contract with Premier Sports for 2023 for “best matches”.
A blog post read: “Premier Sports will dedicate its two linear channels to coverage of Wimbledon (Premier Sports 1 and Premier Sports 2) as well as providing three streams of continuous red-button coverage for the duration of the event.”
Wimbledon Ultra HD in the United States
Although you can watch Wimbledon in the US via ESPN+ (ESPN on TV) or Tennis Channel Plus, neither seems to offer 4K. ESPN+ is limited to 720p and the Tennis Channel site only mentions HD quality.
However, you can watch in 4K via the BBC iPlayer with the method below. Note that BBC America will not broadcast Wimbledon.
Wimbledon Ultra HD outside the UK
If you’re not in the UK – perhaps you’re on holiday abroad – then watching Wimbledon in Ultra HD via the BBC iPlayer will be a bit more difficult but still possible.
You will still need all the requirements mentioned above, but you will need to install a VPN on your TV or device in order to virtually browse from the UK, otherwise the content will be geo-restricted.
We recommend NordVPN And SurfShark, but you can see more in our roundup of the best VPNs. You will need to download and install it before logging in and selecting a UK server. Then launch and browse iPlayer as if you were in the UK.
Note that there are other restrictions when it comes to watching BBC iPlayer outside the UK such as the need for a valid TV license and also the need for a BBC account with a UK postcode .
Find out more in our relevant tutorials:
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