Where & How to Watch the Olympics for Free: 2024 Summer Games in Paris

Key Takeaways: How to Watch the Paris 2024 Olympics

Sign up for a VPN service and download the app.
Connect to a U.K., Australian or Canadian server.
Create a free account with BBC iPlayer (UK), 9Now (AU) or CBC Gem (CA).
Watch the Olympics for free on your preferred service.

What to know about the Paris Olympics:

Opening Ceremony: The Paris 2024 Olympics officially start on Friday, July 26, with an opening ceremony on the River Seine. The closing ceremony takes place on Sunday, Aug. 11.
Live Streams: Events will be broadcast all around the world, but not all options are free. You can tune in to BBC iPlayer in the U.K., 9Now in Australia or CBC Gem in Canada to stream the Olympics for free.
Bypass Restrictions: If you’re not in one of those countries, you’ll be stopped by geoblocks. A VPN like ExpressVPN can help you bypass them.

Best VPN for the Olympic Games

With the Paris 2024 Olympics almost here, you probably already know what channel will cover it in your location. However, knowing how to stream it online for free is a different ball game. This guide shows you how to watch the Olympics for free online and from anywhere in the world.

The events are shown on different channels and services internationally, so where you can watch it will depend on your location. This is also true if you stream it for free online — you’ll be blocked from accessing free services outside of your region. This is where a VPN comes in.

In this guide, we provide step-by-step instructions for using a VPN to access a free streaming service. Not just any VPN, though. You need one of the best VPNs to ensure you not only unblock the service, but also have fast enough speeds for a decent stream. For a quick answer, we recommend using ExpressVPN.

Meet the experts

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Sandra Pattison (Writer, Editor)

Sandra Pattison, a seasoned writer and editor at Cloudwards for over five years, specializes in VPNs, streaming services and children’s online security. Her journey in the tech world, starting with Cloudwards, has seen her contribute to several well-known tech publications while leveraging her personal experience as a parent to better understand the world of online safety. Outside of work, her interests range from photography to enjoying movies and playing The Sims.

More about Sandra Pattison

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Brett Day (Writer, Editor)

Brett Day is an experienced writer and editor at Cloudwards, specializing in project management. With over 14 years in retail management for top-tier companies like CVS, Old Navy, and Kohl’s, he brings a diverse and enriched background to his writing. Brett has also owned a photography business for six years, and his written work has been featured on renowned platforms such as Yahoo, GotGame, and The Phoblographer. Brett also holds a Six Sigma White Belt certification. Outside of his professional pursuits, he’s an avid gamer, passionate hiker and enthusiastic photographer.

More about Brett Day

Learn more about our editorial team and our research process.

07/19/2024

We rewrote this guide to provide updated information for the 2024 Olympics, including the schedule, all in an easier-to-read format.
updates

How to Watch the 2024 Olympic Games Online Without Cable: Free & Paid Options

Your best bet for watching the Olympics online is via a free streaming service, such as:

BBC iPlayer, in the U.K.
9Now in Australia
CBC Gem in Canada

If you’re not in any of those countries, you can use a VPN to get access. This will change your IP address and fool the service into thinking you’re in the correct country. We’ll show you how to do this further down.

Of course, in the U.S., you can watch part of the Olympics on free-to-air channels NBC and Telemundo (Spanish): you can watch the opening and closing ceremonies, certain medal ceremonies and highlights from events for free on the NBC Olympics website.

If you want full access to those channels online, you’ll need a paid U.S. streaming service, such as fuboTV or YouTube TV — both have a free trial available.

Other paid U.S. channels, such as USA Network, CNBC, E!, the Golf Channel and another Spanish channel, Universo, will broadcast events.

With NBC being the official broadcaster in the U.S. for the 2024 Olympics, it’s no surprise that its own streaming service, Peacock, will show every single bit of the competition. That includes every sport, every medal being awarded — literally everything. Unfortunately, Peacock doesn’t offer a free trial. The service costs from $7.99 per month (or from $79.99 per year).

Olympic Streams: Where to Watch the Games Online

In this section, we’ve provided a table to show you all of the services that will show the Olympics online, both free and paid.

Service:	Country	Cost	Notes
BBC iPlayer	U.K.	Free	Create a free account
9Now	Australia	Free	Create a free account
CBC Gem	Canada	Free	Create a free account
NBC website	USA	Free	Will show only the opening & closing ceremony, highlights & medals
Peacock	USA	From $7.99 per month	No free trial. Shows all of the Olympics
YouTube TV	USA	From $72.99 per month	Free trial (duration varies). Includes all U.S. channels covering the Olympics, including NBC & Telemundo
FuboTV	USA	From $72.99 per month	7-day free trial. Includes all U.S. channels covering the Olympics, including NBC & Telemundo
Hulu + Live TV	USA	From $76.99 per month.	No free trial. Includes all U.S. channels covering the Olympics, including NBC & Telemundo.

How to Watch the Summer Olympics Free Online Outside the U.S.

Here’s a step-by-step guide showing you how to stream the 2024 Olympics completely free. We’ve used BBC iPlayer in the U.K. for this example, but you can use similar steps to watch for free on 9Now in Australia or CBC Gem in Canada — just switch to the relevant server location.

Subscribe to a VPN Service

Go to a VPN’s website and sign up for a plan. We suggest using ExpressVPN. It comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, which means you can get a refund at the end.
Install the VPN

Download and install the VPN app onto your computer or other devices you want to watch the Olympics on. Open the app and log in to your account.
Connect to a Server in the U.K.

Find and connect to a server in the U.K. (or Australia or Canada if you want to use a different free service). ExpressVPN’s server list will open when you click on the country section. You can then use the search bar or browse through the servers to find the one you need. Click on the server to connect.
Create a Free BBC iPlayer Account

Go to the BBC iPlayer site and create a free account. You’ll need to provide a valid email for verification, a U.K. postcode (you can find a random one on Google) and click “yes” to having a TV License (you don’t need to prove this, it’s on an honor basis).
Start Streaming the Olympics for Free

Next, search for the Olympics and start streaming it on BBC iPlayer.

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The Best VPNs to Stream 2024 Olympics Coverage

To ensure you pick the best Olympics VPN, you need to make sure it includes certain features. Most importantly, it should have a great track record for unblocking streaming services. After that, the VPN should have fast speeds so you don’t suffer from buffering or poor resolution, and servers in the country you need them, such as the U.K. Here are our top picks.

ExpressVPN — Best VPN for sports streaming. It has excellent speeds, servers in more than 100 countries and can easily unblock any platform. Read more in our ExpressVPN review.
NordVPN — Has the fastest VPN speeds and can unblock streaming services with ease. It also has a huge server network with an interactive map, though it’s a bit clunky on mobile. Learn more in our NordVPN review.
PrivadoVPN — A reputable VPN with a free plan that includes servers in the U.K., USA and Canada. It does have a 10GB monthly data limit, though. Read more in our PrivadoVPN review.

Schedule: Paris Olympics 2024 Dates

With more than 10,000 athletes from 209 nations taking part in various sports, you can imagine just how big the Olympic schedule looks. Here, we’ve provided a more simplified version of the official schedule.

Date:	Event	Location
July 26	Opening ceremony	River Seine & Trocadero Gardens
July 25 – Aug. 4	Archery	Invalides
July 25 – Aug. 4	Artistic gymnastics	Bercy Arena
Aug. 5 – Aug. 10	Artistic swimming	Bercy Arena
Aug. 1 – Aug. 11	Athletics	Track & field – Stade de France Race walks – Trocadero Marathons – Invalides
July 27 – Aug. 5	Badminton	La Chapelle Arena
July 30 – Aug. 5	3×3 basketball	La Concorde
July 27 – Aug. 11	Basketball	Group phase – Pierre Mauroy Stadium Finals – Bercy Arena
July 27 – Aug. 10	Beach volleyball	Eiffel Tower Stadium
July 27 – Aug. 10	Boxing	North Paris Arena / Roland-Garros Stadium
Aug. 9 – Aug. 10	Breaking	La Concorde
July 27 – Aug. 5	Canoe slalom	White water – Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium
Aug. 6 – Aug. 10	Canoe sprint	Flat water – Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium
July 30 – Aug. 2	Cycling BMX	Freestyle – Concorde Racing – BMX Stadium
July 28-July 29	Cycling mountain bike	Elancourt Hill
July 27 – Aug. 4	Cycling road	Time trials – Pont Alexandre III Road races – Trocadero
Aug. 5 – Aug. 11	Cycling track	National Velodrome
July 27 – Aug. 10	Diving	Aquatics Centre
July 27 – Aug. 6	Equestrian	Chateau de Versailles
July 27 – Aug. 4	Fencing	Grand Palais
July 24 – Aug. 10	Football	Bordeaux Stadium Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium La Beaujoire Stadium Lyon Stadium Marseille Stadium Nice Stadium Parc de Princes (finals)
Aug. 1 – Aug. 10	Golf	Le Golf National
July 25 – Aug. 11	Handball	Group stage – South Paris Arena Knockout phase – Pierre Mauroy Stadium
July 27 – Aug. 9	Hockey	Yves-du-Manoir Stadium
July 27 – Aug. 3	Judo	Champ-de-Mars Arena
Aug. 8 – Aug. 9	Marathon swimming	Pont Alexandre III
Aug. 8 – Aug. 11	🤻 Modern pentathlon	Ranking round – North Paris Arena Chateau de Versailles
Aug. 8 – Aug. 10	Rhythmic gymnastics	La Chapelle Arena
July 27 – Aug. 3	Rowing	Flat water – Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium
July 24 – July 30	Rugby sevens	Stade de France
July 28 – Aug. 8	Sailing	Marseille Marina
July 27 – Aug. 5	╾━╤デ╦︻ Shooting	Chateauroux Shooting Centre
July 27 – Aug. 7	Skateboarding	La Concorde
Aug. 5 – Aug. 10	Sport climbing	Le Bourget Climbing Venue
July 27 – Aug. 4	Surfing	Teahupo’o, Tahiti
July 27 – Aug. 4	Swimming	Paris La Defense Arena
July 27 – Aug. 10	Table tennis	South Paris Arena
Aug. 7 – Aug. 10	Taekwondo	Grand Palais
July 27 – Aug. 4	Tennis	Roland Garros
Aug. 2	Trampoline gymnastics	Bercy Arena
July 30 – Aug. 5	Triathlon	Pont Alexandre III
July 27 – Aug. 11	Volleyball	South Paris Arena
July 27 – Aug. 11	Water polo	Aquatics center, Paris La Defense Arena
Aug. 7 – Aug. 11	Weightlifting	South Paris Arena
Aug. 5 – Aug. 11	Wrestling	Champ-de-Mars Arena
Aug. 11	Closing ceremony	Stade de France

When Is the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony?

The Paris Olympics opening ceremony is on July 26. It’s been 100 years since the Olympics were hosted by France, and this opening ceremony is set to be unique with it being the first that isn’t held in a stadium. Instead, it will take place on the River Seine, allowing even more spectators — estimated to be around 600,000 — to enjoy it.

The parade of athletes will still be part of the tradition, with each nation having its own boat. The boat parade will travel through the center of Paris on the Seine, traveling six kilometers in total, and will end at the Trocadero Gardens, where the rest of the Olympic protocol will commence.

Final Thoughts

As the excitement builds, you now know how to catch all the action for the 2024 Olympics, and for free. As usual, various sports events will be included, such as swimming, handball and basketball — we have a separate guide if you want to know how to watch NBA games too.

All you need is a VPN, and ExpressVPN has repeatedly won gold for streaming sports. It’s compatible with lots of devices and if you have friends who want to watch too, it supports eight simultaneous connections. You can try ExpressVPN risk-free using the 30-day money-back guarantee — that’s long enough to watch every sport in the 16-day event.

Where will you watch the games? Will you watch the Olympics live or via highlight videos? Will you need to use a VPN? If so, which one will you choose? Let us know in the comment section and, as always, thank you for reading.

FAQ: Olympics 2024 Live Stream

The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics starts on July 26 and ends on Aug. 11. After that, the next Olympics event will be in 2028 and it will be held in Los Angeles, USA. That said, in a bid to keep costs down, two of the events — softball and canoe slalom — will be held more than 1,000 miles away in Oklahoma City.
You can stream the 2024 Olympics for free on BBC iPlayer in the U.K., 9Now in Australia and CBC Gem in Canada. You can only access those services from within the country, but if you’re not located there, you can use a VPN to spoof your way in.
Yes, you can watch it for free online with services like BBC iPlayer (U.K.), CBC Gem (Canada) and 9Now (Australia). You can use a VPN to get access if you’re not in the country. Alternatively, you can use a live TV streaming service in the U.S. to stream NBC Olympics coverage.
In the U.S., Peacock will show coverage for every moment of the Olympic events, live and on-demand, from the beginning in late July, right up until the end in August.

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