Very soon the main football event will capture the minds of billions of fans around the world. For those of you who live under a rock, the World Cups take place every four years. This summer we are having the 21st edition of the tournament that takes a start in Russia on June 14. According to forecasts, this grandiose spectator will gather approximately 3 billion viewers! Some of the lucky ones have a coveted ticket and now they are preparing for the trip to Russia. Those who are less fortunate are probably planning to watch matches at home, in the circle of friends, in sports bars or fan zones. If you are looking for a way to watch Fifa World Cup 2018, then this article is right for you.
Table of Contents
Can I Watch the FIFA World Cup from Abroad?
Right off the bat, the answer is Yes. However, to do so you will have to put a little bit of an effort in order to bypass regional blocks. The thing is that channels and video streaming services have licenses to air the World Cup matches only in certain territories. If you are outside these territories the broadcasts will not be available.
Luckily, there is a way to mislead channels about your location. This becomes possible thanks to the VPN technology. VPN providers pass your Internet traffic through their servers. When this happens, your IP address changes to IP of a server you are connecting to. It is always up to you what servers to choose. Let’s say you want to watch FIFA World Cup 2018 via BBC iPayer but you are not within the territory of Great Britain. After connecting to one of the VPN services you just need to pick a server located in the UK and voila, BBC iPayer will be in complete confidence that you are in the Foggy Albion. Then, you will have the same functionality as the Queen’s subjects.
Best VPNs to Watch the 2018 FIFA World Cup
Unfortunately, not all VPN providers are equally good. The problem is that streaming services are not happy with the fact that users try to trick them by disguising their IP addresses. They try to detect VPN traffic and then blacklist IP address along with servers it comes from. Therefore, some VPN providers are simply banned on video streaming platforms.
Another difficulty that users of VPN services may encounter is a slow connection. When routing and encrypting traffic, the original Internet speed inevitably drops. With some service, you won’t even notice it while with other vendors the attempts to watch video streams can turn into a torture.
To ensure that your experience with VPN services doesn’t turn out to be a disappointment, you should choose only time-tested providers that can boast millions of satisfied customers. Bellow is the outline of some of the best VPN services to Watch the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
- Provider
- User Rating
- Our Review
- Price
NordVPN- 4829 Votes
- $3.67 /mo
ExpressVPN- 2136 Votes
- $8.32 /mo
PureVPN- 3712 Votes
- $3.54 /mo
Before you decide to subscribe to any vendor I recommend that you take a look at these reviews. They give exhaustive information on why these services are considered the best, what their benefits and what features you can get for your money.
TV Channels Broadcasting FIFA World Cup 2018
The best way to feel the atmosphere of football battles is to be present at one of 12 stadiums the hosts prepared for this grandiose event. OK, I understand that not everyone is lucky enough to become an owner of treasured tickets to the World Cup matches. Well, the second best option is to catch all the action live on your TV screen. More than 80 countries have a license to broadcast the World Cup 2018, so that no one can stay away from the grand football fiesta.
World Cup 2018 Free Online Broadcasts
There are many channels that will show the tournament live for free via their channels or apps. But here is a trick – these free broadcasts will only be available for residents of their countries. So, if during the World Cup you are abroad or there are no free streams in your country, you won’t be able to watch matches on these free channels. The good news, however, is that these circumstances can easily be handled with the help of a VPN. You already know how these services work and later in this article, I’ll show you how to connect to a VPN to watch the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
But first things first, here is a list of channels that will deliver the World Cup to their viewers for free. If you want to check the full list of the FIFA World Cup 2018 official broadcasters you can do it here.
How to Watch World Cup 2018 in English
If you are going to watch the World Cup 2018 in english language, you have two free options available to UK residents: BBC and ITV. The former has the right to air 33 matches while ITV scheduled t show all 64 games of the tournament.
VPN Server: United Kingdom
If you have any doubts on how to unblock BBC iPlayer, read our complete guide here.
VPN Server: United Kingdom
The English-speaking audience can also watch the World Cup 2018 for free from Australia on SBS. The channel will broadcast 25 matches in HD including all the games where the Socceroos play.
VPN Server: Australia
How to Watch World Cup 2018 in German
If you are looking to watch the FIFA World Cup 2018 online from Germany and in German language for free you have two great options – ARD and ZDF, which together will broadcast all the matches of the tournament.
VPN Server: Germany
VPN Server: Germany
How to Watch World Cup 2018 in French
Although TF1 will show only 28 matches of the tournament, the fans who will watch the World Cup 2018 from France won’t be disappointed. Besides the top games, they will have tons of the entertainment content related to the Mundial including extra commentaries and clips.
VPN Server: France
How to Watch World Cup 2018 in Portuguese
If you are wondering how to watch the FIFA World Cup from Portugal, you have a great free option – RTP channel. The viewers from Brazil may also opt for this channel as they speak the same language. Alternative, they can watch free online broadcasts of the World Cup on GloboTV. Although RTP won’t show all the matches, you can be sure to get the coverage of all the top events of the tournament.
VPN Server: Portugal
VPN Server: Brazil
How to Watch World Cup 2018 in Spanish
A large Spanish-speaking audience can watch the World Cup from Spain on Mediaset España, which will cover the tournament online for free. Also, a Mexican channel Televisa will lend a helping hand to those who want to enjoy matches with Spanish commentaries.
Server: Spain
Server: Mexico
World Cup 2018 Paid Online Broadcasts
Unfortunately, free options often do not show all matches. They choose only those that can be of interest to viewers from their particular country. The things are different with paid channels. They usually broadcast all the matches, plus add a lot of exclusive content covering events around the tournament. Here are some paid options to watch the World Cup from everywhere with a help of a VPN.
How to Watch World Cup 2018 from USA
For American fans of the game number one, the broadcasts of all 64 matches will be available on the official FOX website. You can watch stream videos via Fox Soccer Match Pass and Fox Sports Go. Alternatively, you can download Fox Sports Go app on your mobile phone or tablet. Also, if you have devices such as Apple TV, Fire TV, Xbox, and Roku you are able to pair them with Fox’s app to enjoy matches of World Cup aired live.
Another paid option to watch the World Cup in the USA is NBC. This year the channel didn’t get the right to air the tournament live but you are still able to watch matches on the NBC’s official website and through the app. If Spanish is your mother tongue you can watch FIFA World Cup 2018 from the US in this language through live streaming on NBC’s Telemundo.
VPN Server: USA
VPN Server: USA
How to Watch World Cup 2018 from Germany
Sky is the official broadcaster in Germany. Also, it covers New Zealand, the Caribbean or South American counties. You can enjoy live streams on the company’s website or install the Sky Sports app on your mobile device. For residents of Germany Sky Go Deutschland will show 25 matches in Ultra HD quality.
Server: Germany
How to Watch World Cup 2018 from Middle East
beIn Sports covers sports events for people in the Middle East and North Africa. On their official website, you will be able to view all 64 matches of the World Cup 2018 in Russia in HD quality (1080p). For the convenience of the fans, the provider offers special packages to watch the tournament. You just need to select your country from the list and choose a package that suits your needs.
VPN Server: in a MENA region (Middle East and North Africa)
How to Watch the FIFA World Cup 2018 without Cable
Unfortunately, many official broadcasters are paid cable channels. You may not want to buy a subscription to watch just one event even as exciting as the FIFA World Cup. Fortunately, there is a solution for such spectators. Below is a brief breakdown of the most popular streaming services where you can enjoy matches of the football Mundial.
Hulu
Hulu is one of Netflix’s most serious competitors with a massive library of streaming videos. Now, in addition to the catalog of movies and shows, you can watch live broadcasts of sports events. And all this for $39.99 per month. The service also provides a 7-day free trial period. With Hulu Live TV, you can watch matches of the World Cup through official broadcasters without the need to purchase a subscription of a particular channel.
Direct TV
Another option for those who don’t have cable is Direct TV. This streaming service is also an official broadcaster of the FIFA World Cup 2018 for the Caribbean region. For $35 per month, you will get access to more than 60 channels to enjoy not only sports events, but also news, movies, series, shows, and everything that your heart desires.
FuboTV
FuboTV is arguably the best online streaming platform for sports broadcasts. The service covers many events available through such channels as Fox, CBS, ESPN, etc. And all this for $19.99 for the first month (although, then you have to shell out for $44.99 per month). You can test the service during the free trial period. FuboTV is available on a variety of devices among which are Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast, and others.
Sling TV
Sling TV is one of the most budget-friendly options to get live streams of sports events, news, movies, shows, etc. To watch FIFA World Cup 2018 the service offers three subscription options: for $20 you can purchase the Sling Orange package with 30 channels including ESPN; when paying $25 you will get the Blue package including Fox and NBC. If you want to have it all, you might be interested in the Sling Orange + Blue package that costs $40 per month. But before you opt for any subscription, it is best to try the channel’s free 7-days trial run.
How to watch the FIFA World Cup 2018 with a VPN
As you see, there can be numerous options of how to watch the football Mundial 2018. If you choose a channel or streaming service that has rights to broadcast in your country then you can enjoy the spectator sport to the fullest. However, if you see the message that content has been blocked due to regional restrictions, it is time to use a VPN for help because you don’t want to miss a thing, do you?
For starters, I would like to say that you can watch the 2018 World Cup in Russia with a VPN on all devices that support Internet connection. It can be computers and laptops working with Windows, Mac OSX and Linux. If you like the convenience of mobile devices you can install a VPN app on your iPhone or Android cell phone or tablet. Have a smart TV? Congrats, smart TVs support a VPN technology too. There are numerous other VPN-enabling devices such as Kodi TV Box, Android TV, Apple TV Box, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Nvidia Shield, etc. On top of that, if you have game consoles PlayStation 4 and Xbox One you can pair them with a VPN to stream the 2018 World Cup matches. Finally, many providers will allow you to install VPN apps on a router so that you can cover all the devices connected to it.
So, if you have some of these devices you know that you can team them up with a VPN to watch your favorite sports broadcast. Now, let’s see how you can set up a VPN app on these gargets. The process of installation may vary depending on a particular device but generally you will need to follow these steps:
- Choose the VPN service you are going to use and sign up. I strongly recommend that you turn to trustworthy providers such as NordVPN, ExpressVPN and PureVPN. Remember, if for some reason you are not satisfied with a provider you can cancel a subscription and ask your money back within a refund window.
- Pick a device that you want to connect to a VPN and download an appropriate app. You can find apps for devices on the providers’ official websites.
- Once you installed an app you need to sign in using the same login info you provided when subscribed for your VPN service.
- On the app, find a list of servers and pick one that is located in a country that has broadcasting rights.
- Connect to a server. Once the connection is established, your real IP address will be disguised. Instead, you will have an IP address of a selected country.
- Now you can visit a website of your broadcaster or run its mobile app. If you haven’t signed up for any streaming services it is great time to do it since your real location is masked.
When you follow these easy steps you will no longer experience any problems with geo-restricted content. With a VPN, you can enjoy all the matches of the FIFA World Cup 2018 via a streaming service of your choice.
What Teams Play in the FIFA World Cup 2018
32 national teams formed eight groups of four teams each. They will play 48 matches in 11 cities of Russia. After this, 16 teams that qualify for the playoffs will go to the next round and the other half or participants will have to head home.
For this tournament, FIFA came up with new rules for drawing. As a result, at the World Cup in Russia, we don’t have so-called groups of death. Instead, we got a lot of interesting groups that promise heated battles on the football fields of Russia. The most intriguing is Group E that gathered Pentacampione (Brazil national team) and three strong rivals worthy of each other (Switzerland, Costa Rica, Serbia). Group D brought together four equal competitors – Iceland, Croatia, Nigeria, and Argentina, but the latter has an ace in the sleeve, Lionel Messi.
I am sure the group stage will bring lots of unpredictable surprises and dark horses will be able to step out of the shadow of recognized favorites. Here is the list of all the FIFA World Cup 2018 national teams divided into groups. Let me outline some intrigues of the first stage of the world championship along with the schedule of games for each quartet. Please note that the time the matches kick off is given by the Moscow time zone UTC +3.
Group A
Who will play: Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Uruguay.
The hosts of the tournament, Russians, are certainly happy with the draw. The head coach of the national team, Stanislav Cherchesov, is already preparing for the playoffs. However, they shouldn’t get ahead of themselves. The rivals of the Russian bears will also try to show what they are made of. The main star of the Egypt national team, Mohamed Salah, promises to recover after the injury and be ready for the group stage of the tournament. Who knows, maybe he will be able to push his team into the playoffs. By the way, out of 32 competitors, only three teams have never reached the knockout stage, and Egypt is one of them. This fact must give the payers the stronger motivation to make this historic achievement.
Schedule of the Group A Matches:
14th June. 18.00. Moscow. The Luzhniki Stadium. Russia – Saudi Arabia
15th June. 15.00. Yekaterinburg. Egypt – Uruguay
19th June. 21.00. St. Petersburg. Russia – Egypt
20th June. 18.00. Rostov-on-Don. Uruguay – Saudi Arabia
25th June. 17.00. Samara. Uruguay – Russia
25th June. 17.00. Volgograd. Saudi Arabia – Egypt
Group B
Who will play: Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Iran.
The third day of the tournament brings a fierce rivalry between the Pyrenees teams. The reigning European champion, Portugal, led by 5-times Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo, will face the team that previously held the titles of European and World Champions, Spain. The last times the teams met in the semi-final of the Euro 2012 when in a dramatic series of penalty shoot-outs the Spaniards defeated their neighbors.
What can Iran and Morocco undertake against the current champion of Europe and the former world champion? It seems like it is a foregone conclusion of what teams will go further. However, the Portugal squad is often not able to cope with a load of expectations. Besides, once Morocco have beaten them at one of the previous World Cups.
Schedule of the Group B Matches:
15th June. 18.00. St. Petersburg. Morocco – Iran
15th June. 21.00. Sochi. Portugal to Spain
20th June. 15.00. Moscow. The Luzhniki Stadium. Portugal – Morocco
20th June. 21.00. Kazan. Iran – Spain
25th June. 21.00. Saransk. Iran – Portugal
25th June. 21.00. Kaliningrad. Spain – Morocco
Group C
Who will play: France, Australia, Peru, Denmark
Group C didn’t gather all the top teams but there is also a room for intrigue. It will be especially interesting to observe the rivalry between two European teams, France and Denmark. The clash of these squads in the group promises the Tricolor two outcomes: either a title or a complete failure. Three times France won tournaments after defeating Denmark at the first stage – in 1984, 1998 and 2000. Two more times France came to tournaments as one of the possible winners but couldn’t beat Denmark and dropped out after the group stage. This happened in 1992 (this year Scandinavians took the title to the surprise of many fans) and 2002.
The team Australia led by 38-year-old Tim Cahill has always been a tough opponent even for football grands. Will the Socceroos show thrilling football, or maybe it is Peru’s time to become a sensation of the World Cup? Soon we’ll find out.
Schedule of the Group C Matches:
16th June. 13.00. Kazan. France – Australia
16th June. 19.00. Saransk. Peru – Denmark
21st June. 18.00. Samara. Denmark – Australia
21st June. 15.00. Yekaterinburg. France to Peru
26th June. 17.00. Moscow. The Luzhniki Stadium. Denmark – France
26th June. 17.00. Sochi. Australia – Peru
Group D
Who will play: Argentina, Iceland, Croatia, Nigeria
The rivalry between Argentina and Nigeria at the World Cups has become a football classic. Just check it out: in 1994, Argentina beats Nigerians 2:1. In 2002, Gabriel Batistuta’s goal brings victory to Argentina again. In 2010, another Gabriel, this time Heinze, scores the only goal and Argentina defeats their opponents the third time in a row. The followed face-off of these teams brought more goals but the winner remained the same. The match turned into a performance of Leo Messi and Ahmed Musa. Both scored two goals but Argentineans managed to concede one goal more thanks to Marcos Rojo. And now in 2018, the fate brings these teams together one more time. Will the Nigerians manage to stop a series of defeats or Argentina will take another victory over the Super Eagles?
By the way, we might become witnesses of another head-to-head between Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi in the quarterfinals. For this, their teams need to take the same places in groups and go through the stage of the 1/8 finals. Then, we may finally find out who of these titans of modern football is better.
Schedule of the Group D Matches:
16th June. 16.00. Moscow. Spartak Stadium. Argentina – Iceland
16th June. 22.00. Kaliningrad. Croatia – Nigeria
21st June. 21.00. Nizhny Novgorod. Argentina – Croatia
22st June. 18.00. Volgograd. Nigeria – Iceland
26st June. 21.00. St. Petersburg. Nigeria – Argentina
26st June. 21.00. Rostov-on-Don. Iceland – Croatia
Group E
Who will play: Brazil, Switzerland, Costa Rica, Serbia
The group with 5-times world cup winners is always interesting. Moreover, the Brazilians crave revenge for the failed home tournament. In Group E, they are waiting for the Serbians, with whom selecao have not yet played in the final stages of the World Cup but met four times with their predecessors, the Yugoslav national team. In this rivalry, the results were more even: each team gain one victory and two more times the games ended in draw. Both squads are able to demonstrate enchanting football and at the same time they both depend on the mood.
The complete opposite is the national team of Switzerland. The Swiss endeavor to become one of the elite football squads and they have all the prerequisites for future achievements. Finally, there is also a national team of Costa Rica, which is considered an outsider of the group but we all remember the sensation that they created in 2014, especially since their leader, goalkeeper Keylor Navas is up and doing.
Schedule of the Group E Matches:
17th June. 15.00. Samara. Costa Rica – Serbia
17th June . 21.00. Rostov-on-Don. Brazil – Switzerland
22nd June. 15.00. St. Petersburg. Brazil – Costa Rica
22nd June. 21.00. Kaliningrad. Serbia – Switzerland
27th June. 21.00. Moscow. Spartak Stadium. Serbia – Brazil
27th June. 21.00. Nizhny Novgorod. Switzerland – Costa Rica
Group F
Who will play: Germany, Mexico, Sweden, South Korea
The reigning world champions are in an interesting company. Perhaps, no one has any doubts that the Germans will take the first place in the group. Mexicans are good in ball control but by and large this is all they can put on the table. Sweden didn’t take Zlatan on board and this is probably even better for the national team, but everybody will definitely miss his performances. Korea is a ‘one star and all the rest’ team as Sweden used to be. The fight for second place in the Group F will be curious but Mexico seems to have better chances.
Schedule of the Group F Matches:
17th June. 18.00. Moscow. The Luzhniki Stadium. Germany – Mexico
18th June. 15.00. Nizhny Novgorod. Sweden to Korea
23rd June. 18.00. Sochi. Germany – Sweden
23rd June. 21.00. Rostov-on-Don. Korea-Mexico
27th June. 17.00. Kazan. Korea – Germany
27th June. 17.00. Yekaterinburg. Mexico – Sweden
Group G
Who will play: Belgium, Panama, Tunisia, England
Teams of Belgium and England expect to stay in Russia till the middle of July. However, the Brits had the same hopes at the previous World Cup and we all remember what it ended up with.
The Belgians are considered to be one of the strongest football nations. The third place in the FIFA ranking confirms this statement. Will the football players from the land of waffles and beer convert their talent into something bigger? Or will they remain another great team that has not realized their potential to the fullest?
Schedule of the Group G Matches:
18th June. 18.00. Sochi. Belgium – Panama
18th June. 21.00. Volgograd. Tunisia – England
23rd June. 15.00. Moscow. Spartak Stadium. Belgium – Tunisia
24th June. 15.00. Nizhny Novgorod. England – Panama
28th June. 21.00. Kaliningrad. England – Belgium
28th June. 21.00. Saransk. Panama – Tunisia
Group H
Who will play: Poland, Senegal, Colombia, Japan.
In the opening match of the 2002 World Cup, the Senegalese, who break through into the Mundial for the first time, defeated the then-champion of the world and Europe the team of France. The African players were so inspired that they even reached the quarterfinals. This year the Lions of Teranga return to the world football family. They will celebrate this event in a good company. Firstly, they will face Poland, then they will measure their strength against Japan and finally, they will have a head-to-head with Columbia. Will the Africans be able to demonstrate the same football carnival on the pitches of Russia as they showed in Japan and Korea?
Schedule of the Group H Matches:
19th June. 18.00. Saransk. Colombia – Japan
19th June. 15.00. Moscow. Spartak Stadium. Poland – Senegal
24th June. 18.00. Yekaterinburg. Japan – Senegal
24th June. 21.00. Kazan. Poland – Colombia
28th June. 17.00. Volgograd. Japan – Poland
28th June. 17.00. Samara. Senegal – Colombia
Now when you are armed with all the necessary information on the Fifa World Cup in Russia you won’t miss a second of the grand spectator sport. Even restrictions won’t stop you because you know how to bypass them with a VPN. I hope the upcoming Mundial brings you tons of positive emotions!
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