How to watch Super Bowl 2025: You can stream the game live for free with no cable required
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As the 2025 NFL season reaches its finale this weekend, football fans across the nation are gearing up for Super Bowl LIX, set to take place on Sunday, February 9, 2025, at 6:30 PM ET in the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. On one side, we have the Kansas City Chiefs striving for their third Super Bowl victory in a row. On the other, we have the Philadelphia Eagles seeking revenge for their loss to the Chiefs in the 2023 Super Bowl.Also:The best 85-inch TVs of 2025: Expert tested and reviewedThis year, Fox will be the exclusive broadcaster for the big game, but cord-cutters need not worry -- plenty of streaming options are available to catch all the action, from the opening kickoff to the final whistle. Unless you watch the game over the air (OTA) with anantenna, the best and cheapest way to watch the Super Bowl is witha live TV streaming service.FOX Deportes and Telemundo will both air Spanish-language broadcasts of the big game. This will be the first time two simultaneous Spanish-language broadcasts of the Super Bowl will be available in the US.Also: The best VPNs for streamingAs it has been in the past, the Super Bowl will not be broadcast in true native 4K HDR. Instead, it will be produced in 1080p high-dynamic range (HDR) and then upscaled to 4K HDR. This higher-quality stream will be available on DirecTV, Dish Network, YouTube TV (with 4K Plus add-on), and FuboTV. It's unclear if it will be available in 4K HDR on OTA channels. Don't invest in an 8K TV anytime soon -- unless you must have cutting-edge TV technology. There's little enough 4K content out there and almost none in 8K.Below, you'll find all the rest of your Super Bowl streaming options. Sort by All Where to stream Super Bowl 2025 Show less DirecTV Stream DirecTV Stream has gone through an amazing number of name changes. In the past, it's been AT&T TV, AT&T TV Now, and DirecTV Now. Whatever you call it, you'll get your local Fox station on even its cheapest package: the $74.99 Entertainment package. The service also offers Telemundo for its Spanish-speaking NFL fans.Also: 6 ways to save money on TV streaming without losing the shows you loveDirecTV Stream's other packages offer additional channels, with prices from $79.99 to $154.99 per month. DirecTV recently started offering 4K streaming, and it's available on all its packages at no additional charge.In addition, DirecTV Stream includes generous unlimited Cloud DVR storage. At home, you can watch the game or any other show on up to 20 streaming devices at once on your home network. Away from home, you can share your stream with three other devices. Read More Show Expert Take Show less Show less ExpressVPN ExpressVPN is ZDNET's tested pick for best VPN for streaming, and best VPN overall. It supports up to eight simultaneous connections and has a large network of servers, making it an ideal VPN for streaming content. ExpressVPN also offers a 30-day free trial if you'd like to test it out just for the big game. Read More Show Expert Take Show less Show less Fubo Fubo, formerly FuboTV, is best known for its sports coverage. But it's not just sports. It's also a full-fledged streaming service with all the usual networks, including the one that matters for the game: Fox. For Spanish speakers, Fubo also offers Telemundo and FOX Deportes.The streaming service, as you might know, was recently acquired by Disney. As a result, Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery have dumped their plans for Venu, a super-streaming service that would have incorporated pretty much all sports. What this will mean in the future is unclear, but, for now, Fubo is still a service in its own right and a good choice for watching the Super Bowl.Also: The best live TV streaming services: Expert testedFubo's starter plan, Pro, has 210 channels and 1,000 hours of cloud DVR storage. You can stream to up to 10 screens at once on your home network and three screens at once away from home for $74.99 a month. One big plus about FuboTV is that it offers 4K streaming as part of its base package.Fubo's other packages -- Elite, $89.99, and Premier, $99.99 -- include additional channels.This service also encourages new users to sign up for the big game with a free seven-day trial. Fubo is convinced you'll stick with its service once you've tried it. Read More Show Expert Take Show less Show less Hulu + Live TV Hulu with Live TV offers Fox on all its packages. The least expensive option is Live TV, which is only $76.99 a month. You can watch the game on Telemundo or FOX Deportes if you speak Spanish.You could get one of the service's bundles withDisney+andESPN+, albeit all with ads bundled. For $79.99 a month, that's a good deal. Or if you can't stand ads (like me), you can pay $89.99 and avoid most ad spots.Also: I gave Telly my data and privacy for a free TV - and I don't regret itWith any of these packages, you can stream two sessions at once. For another $10 a month, you can play as many streams at once at home. But you're still limited to three screens while away from home.Another nice plus is you can store unlimited videos in your cloud DVR archive for up to nine months. One thing you can't do, however, is watch or store the Super Bowl in 4K. While you can watch many Hulu shows, such as Only Murders in the Building, Kindred, and Reboot, in 4K, live TV shows, including the Super Bowl, aren't available in 4K. Sorry. Read More Show Expert Take Show less Show less Sling TV Last year, Sling TV was a no-show for the big game. This year, it's back. Sling TV offers the most budget-friendly option, with Sling Blue's monthly packages starting at $45. Spanish speakers, you'll need to subscribe to its $14.99 per month "Spanish Plus" add-on package. Or, you could subscribe to its standalone Spanish-language plan for $34.99 monthly, including FOX Deportes.However, it's crucial to note that Fox is only available in select markets with Sling, so potential subscribers should verify coverage in their area before committing to this service.With Sling TV, subscribers automatically get 50 hours of free DVR storage, but you can extend that to 200 hours of storage by adding DVR+ for an additional $5 a month. With Sling Blue or Sling Latino, you can watch TV on up to three screens at once. If you also subscribe to Sling Orange, $40 monthly, you can add one more screen for a total of four. Read More Show Expert Take Show less Show less Tubi This is an obscure, free, ad-supported streaming service owned by Fox. Its parent company has just announced that it, too, will be showing the Super Bowl. It's a low-end service without multiple screens or any DVR functionality. It will also only show the game on low-end 720p HDTV. On the other hand, you can't beat the price. Read More Show Expert Take Show less Show less YouTube TV With over 100 channels, YouTube TV offers more of the most popular channels than its competitors. By CNET's count, out of thetop 100 networks, YouTube TV offers the most channels, 78, of any streaming service.YouTube TV enables you to watch your local ABC, CBS, Fox, PBS, and NBC channels in most areas. That means, of course, you can easily watch the Super Bowl on the service with its lowest-priced plan, the YouTube TV Base Plan, for $82.99 a month.Spanish speakers, however, must pay $14.99 per month for the "Spanish Plus" add-on package to get FOX Deportes along with several other Spanish-language channels, such as ESPN Deportes, Discovery en Espaol, and CNN en Espaol. Or, if your family's first language is Spanish and you can live without English shows, YouTube TV also offers a standalone Spanish-language plan for $34.99 per month, which includes FOX Deportes and over 28 other Spanish-language channels, but without English streaming services.Also: How to download YouTube videos for free - 2 waysYouTube TV also offers a new feature that can make watching the game more enjoyable. All TV broadcasts come with delays between the live action and what you see on your TV. As you may know, live broadcast delays on streaming services are longer than OTA's delays. They can range from six to 60 seconds. This latency is due to transmission slowdowns between the cameras and your screen.Now, some YouTube TV apps come with the option of reducing this delay,The new option is available in the YouTube TV app under the "More" menu > "Broadcast Delay". You can choose between "Default" and "Decrease for 48 hours." If you choose to decrease, you'll see the game a few seconds faster. But, Google warns, "The lower the broadcast delay, the less buffer the video player will have. With a lower broadcast delay, you're more likely to experience playback interruption."That means the game may freeze at times, or you may experience choppy video. I fear the big game's load on the internet makes it more likely than not that you'll see a lot of bad playback. The choice is yours. Personally, I plan to try it because if the video goes south, I can always switch back to Default. YouTube TV also has unlimited cloud storage, and you get six accounts to share with your household. You can use this service on three screens at once. Super Bowl watchers can also watch the game in 4K, but you must pay an additional $9.99 for 4K Plus to get that resolution. Therefore, the total monthly cost for YouTube TV with 4K streaming is $92.98. Read More Show Expert Take Show less Enjoy the game, my friends!Super Bowl streaming options, comparedMonthly subscription costFox included with base plan?Spanish language options4K available?DirecTV Stream$75Yes.TelemundoNo.Fubo$80Yes.Fox Deportes & TelemundoYes, with $90 Elite Plan.TubiFreeNo.No.No.Hulu with Live TV$77Yes.Fox Deportes & TelemundoNo.Sling TV (Blue)$46Yes.Fox Deportes with an additional $15 Spanish Plus packageNo.YouTube TV$83*Yes.Fox Deportes is available on the $25 Spanish PlanYes, with the $10 4K Plus plan.* A lower-cost trial is available.Can I stream the Super Bowl from outside the US? Will a VPN help, too? Some international TV services will be offering the Super Bowl. In Canada, for example, you can watch the game with a DAZN streaming subscription for CA$24.99 per month. If you're in the UK or Ireland, you can watch the Super Bowl live stream on Sky Sports. But you can also watch the game on the free UK streaming channel, ITVX.Or, if you want to watch using your usual US streaming service, with most VPNs, you can stream the game from your home streaming service. ZDNET named ExpressVPN as the best VPN for streaming. Show more Do I need a live TV subscription service to stream the Super Bowl? If you don't have cable, satellite, or OTA, you'll need a live TV-streaming service that offers CBS to get the big game.Your choices include DirecTV Stream, FuboTV, Hulu with Live TV,Sling TV Blue, Tubi, and YouTube TV.Regardless of how you watch the game, you'll need at least an 8Mbps or better internet connection. Faster is always better. If your service provides streams in 4K, you'll want a speedy 16 Mbps or faster connection. Show more What time is the Super Bowl? The Super Bowl game begins on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, at 6:30pm ET. The game will take place at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. Show more Can I watch the Super Bowl for free? Thanks to Tubi, yes, you can. It won't be the greatest quality, but it will be available. With an antenna, you can get an even better 1080p HDTV stream. Otherwise, to get the big game, you'll need a live TV-streaming service that offers your local Fox station.Your live TV choices areDirecTV Stream,FuboTV,Hulu with Live TV,Sling TV Blue,Tubi, andYouTube TV. Show more Who is playing the Super Bowl Halftime Show? Kendrick Lamar will headline the Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show. This will be Lamar's second Super Bowl performance, following his appearance in 2022 alongside Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, and Mary J. Blige. Jon Batiste, a five-time Grammy Award-winning artist from New Orleans, will sing the national anthem. Show more What is the cheapest way to stream the big game? The least expensive way to watch the game is with an antenna. The game will also be available on Tubi. For now, the Super Bowl is still on broadcast television, but this might not be the case going forward.More and more NFL games are only available on streaming services. The post-season AFC Wild Card game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens was aired exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. It was the first NFL playoff game to be exclusively streamed on Prime Video, and it won't be the last. I don't think the Super Bowl will become a pay-for-view event in the next few years, but it will happen.In the meantime, make sure your streaming service supports your local Fox station. Before putting your money down, ensure the service delivers the game. Sure, you'll be fine most of the time, but you don't want to explain to your buddies that they can't watch the game if you're one of the unfortunate few who can't stream a local Fox station. Show more Where can I stream the Super Bowl in 4K? To watch the Super Bowl in 4K, your least expensive choice is Fubo's Elite Plan or better, which bundles in 4K. Your only other option is YouTube TV, but you'll pay an extra $10 for 4K. In both cases, however, what you'll be watching is upgraded 1080p, not native 4K. It's still better than 1080p, but we're still years away from America's biggest sporting event being presented in true 4K. Show more How can I watch the Super Bowl without cable? Unless you can get the game with an antenna from a local Fox station, you'll need Tubi or one of theTV cable replacement serviceslisted above.Gray-market streaming services will also show the big game. Don't go there. Some don't work well, and others can infect your smart TV with malware.Malwareis now targeting Samsung TVs,Amazon Fire TVs, and Sticks. It is not worth taking a chance with your smart TV, even if it is the Super Bowl. Show more Can I watch the Super Bowl on Amazon Prime? No, Amazon Prime Video only got the one Wild Card game, mentioned above. The popular streaming service won't show any other playoff games this season. Show more Further ZDNET Tech Coverage Smartphones Smartwatches Tablets Laptops TVs Other Tech Resources ZDNET Recommends
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