The FIFA World Cup is one of the most popular sporting events in the world, and for good reason — every four years, soccer fans around the world are treated to a full month of exciting matches. Sadly, the U.S. team didn’t make the cut this year, but you can still follow plenty of top-notch teams through the 2018 championship.
This year’s World Cup will be hosted in Russia, with 32 teams vying for the prize. Germany is slated to win for the second Cup in a row. But others, such as Brazil and England, are looking to challenge. Another strong contender this year is Argentina. After an upset in the final match in 2014, the team is looking to make a comeback with Lionel Messi at the helm — in what may be his last World Cup appearance.
All this year’s matches will be shown on either Telemundo, Fox or FS1. If you’ve cut the cord on your cable subscription, it might seem like you are shut out of this year’s World Cup. Luckily, you can tune in, even without cable. Here are three of the best ways to watch the FIFA World Cup without a cable TV subscription.
[Read: 6 Cheap Ways to Watch NFL Games Without a Cable Package.]
Use an antenna for free limited viewing. If you’re okay with missing a few matches, a digital antenna lets you legally avoid paying to watch the World Cup. If you don’t already have a digital antenna, you can pick one up for between $10 and $100. Once you have one, you’ll be able to access a ton of channels for free without paying a monthly fee. For World Cup fans, specifically, most antenna users should be able to tune in to Telemundo and Fox, which means you’ll be able to get many of the games without a pricey subscription.
If you need to watch every game, a digital antenna may not be the right choice for you. After all, you’ll miss any match showing exclusively on FS1. That said, the final match is showing on Fox, and many matches between the first and last are shown on both Fox and FS1, so if you’re okay to sacrifice a few matches to save some money, an antenna will do the trick.
[See: 10 Big Ways to Boost Your Budget — Without Skimping on Your Daily Latte.]
Stream online for complete-but-paid coverage. The best way to catch every single match without cable is through an online streaming service. Several streaming services will show every match, each with unique features and offered at different price points.
— Hulu with Live TV is $40 a month and features options for both watching matches live and catching up later. Hulu’s cloud digital video recorder comes with 50 hours of recording time, and although that isn’t much, it will definitely come in handy if you’re going to have to miss a match here and there. You also have the option to upgrade to unlimited storage for an extra $15 a month. If you’re not sure Hulu is the right choice for you (or you care to catch only a few of the matches), you can try the service free for seven days.
— DirecTV Now’s “Live a Little” package is $35 a month. Although it offers just 20 hours’ worth of storage on its cloud DVR, it’s still a little cheaper than many of the other World Cup options. One thing to note: DirecTV Now’s local Fox coverage isn’t as robust as some of the others on this list, so make sure to check that it will be available in your area. If you want to see for yourself or check out a free week of matches, the service offers a seven-day free trial.
— YouTube TV is $40 a month and offers the best watch-later option on this list: A subscription to this service comes with unlimited storage on its cloud DVR, so you can catch up on or rewatch as many matches as you want. If you want to try this service out, you can try it free for seven days.
— FuboTV would normally be the most expensive option on the list at $45 a month. But right now, it’s offering a one-month trial for $20. Since the World Cup lasts a month, that means you could catch the entire championship for about half the price of most of the other full-coverage streaming services. That price comes with just 30 hours of cloud DVR storage, but that can be upgraded to 500 hours for $10 a month.
[Read: 8 Ways to Get the Most Value From Your Netflix Account.]
Try the Fox Sports Go app with login credentials. One way to make sure you can watch every match is with the Fox Sports Go app. You’ll need credentials from another streaming service or cable subscription to log in, but once you do, you’ll find every match available live through the app. Any of the above streaming services work to log in.
The FIFA World Cup comes around only once every four years, so if you’re a soccer fan, you won’t want to miss it. Even without a cable subscription, you can catch the championship using an antenna, streaming service or app and find the option that best suits your budget.
More from U.S. News
11 Expenses Destroying Your Budget
8 Big Budgeting Blunders — and How to Fix Them
12 Useless Fees Draining Your Budget
How to Watch the FIFA World Cup Without Cable originally appeared on usnews.com
