How to watch the 2026 FIFA World Cup: 9 ways to stream (including free options)


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With more teams competing than ever, the 2026 FIFA World Cup is shaping up to be one of the biggest sporting events of all time. Action kicks off June 11 and runs through July 19 across the US, Canada, and Mexico, and there’s no shortage of ways to watch, since all the games will be broadcast live. But what are your options if you don’t have an expensive cable package?

You’re in luck. There are several options to watch the World Cup for free or low cost (or at least much cheaper than regular cable). From absolutely free to free trials to affordable subscriptions, here’s a look at your best options to watch or stream the World Cup action without blowing your budget.

Also: The best live TV streaming services of 2026: Expert tested

How to stream the World Cup 2026

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best-buy-essentials-antenna

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In case you forgot or never knew, over-the-air broadcast (OTA) TV is still a thing, and you can probably pick up all of your local networks and more with an old-fashioned OTA antenna. Enter your address here to see which stations you can get.

These antennas, which won’t break the bank (our pick for the best cheap model is this one from Best Buy for $20), connect to the cable input in the back of your TV. You won’t get any fancy features like pausing or recording, but you will be able to watch. Since Fox has the broadcast rights for the World Cup, the vast majority of matches will be available (70 out of 104). Your local Telemundo stations will likely be broadcasting some matches in Spanish. You can check your local listings for times here

Also: The best TV antennas to buy in 2026


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Fox One

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Fox holds the rights for the World Cup this year, and you can stream directly from the source. Fox One gives you three days free, after which it’s $20 a month. This is one of the cheaper options if you only want to watch the World Cup and aren’t concerned about any other channels.


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Peacock

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Peacock may be the cheapest way to stream the action, but it comes with a catch. You can stream all 104 matches through Telemundo on Peacock, but the commentary will be in Spanish. You can score a subscription for about $10 a month, depending on which tier you choose, so you can get the whole World Cup for about $20. If you’re a Walmart+ subscriber or an Instacart+ subscriber, you get Peacock, including the World Cup, for free.


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Tubi

Tubi

If you just want to check in on the action here and there, Tubi, a free streaming service, will broadcast the opening ceremony and two matches live: Mexico versus South Africa on Thursday, June 11, and the US Men’s National Team versus Paraguay on Friday, June 12. Tubi will also offer replays and recaps, edited game versions, highlight clips, and daily recaps of goals and standout plays.


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iheartradio

If you’re fine with audio-only, Fox has partnered with the iHeartRadio app to provide live English-language broadcasts of all 104 matches of the 2026 World Cup. You can download this app on your Android or  phone, your Roku TV, Google TV, or hundreds of other smart devices. 


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YouTube TV

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YouTube TV is an incredibly popular live TV streaming service (and our pick for the best live TV streaming service overall) that will get you access to your local Fox station and all of the World Cup games. It offers a 10-day free trial. It’s usually $83 a month, but you can get it for $68 a month for the first three months if you’re a new user.


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Fubofubo

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Fubo TV’s live TV service has smaller bundles you can choose from, and the sports bundle, which gets you the channels you need for the World Cup, starts at $56. There’s a free 5 day trial if you want to test things.


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Hulu + Live TV

Hulu/ZDNET

Hulu + Live TV gets you more than 100 channels, including Fox, which you’ll need for the World Cup. It’s $90 a month, but that also gets you Disney+ and ESPN Select. There’s a free 3-day trial.


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DirecTV Stream

DirecTV/ZDNET

Like other services, DirecTV offers bundles that let you save money over a full subscription. In addition to the 5-day free trial, you can get the entertainment package to watch the World Cup for $60 a month for your first month.


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When is the World Cup 2026?

The FIFA World Cup 2026 takes place from Thursday, June 11 through Sunday, July 19. The soccer tournament will be hosted across the US, Canada, and Mexico, with 48 teams playing 104 matches. 

What channel is the World Cup on?

Fox owns the rights to the World Cup 2026, so games will be broadcast live on the channel or the Fox One streaming service, as well as several others that offer Fox, like YouTube TV, Fubo, and Hulu + Live TV.





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Recent Reviews


Researchers in South Korea developed a wearable system that uses seven smart rings to read finger and hand motions to translate American Sign Language and International Sign Language into text. The purpose is to make communicating easier between those who sign and nonsigners without needing a separate human interpreter. 

AI Atlas

According to the study, published Friday in the journal Science Advances, the system reliably recognized 100 ASL and ISL words during testing. It also performed well with users the system had not seen before, and it didn’t require recalibration for each person. Because the system detects words in sequence, it can produce sentence-level translations without extra training on grammar. 

ASL and ISL are the everyday languages of more than 72 million deaf and hard-of-hearing people. However, most hearing people do not know any words in these languages or have a very basic understanding. That gap makes certain tasks, like ordering at a restaurant or asking for help, much more difficult. 

A graphic shows two illustrated people talking in sign language, ASL and ISL. The graphic also shows the different components of the ring as well as pictures of hands modeling the rings.

A concept of how the rings work in the real world. 

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Existing sign language translator prototypes often rely on bulky gloves that can distract from or block natural hand movement or feel uncomfortable for the wearer, which limits real word adaption. Camera-based technologies can work well in controlled environments but are often limited to those places where a camera can be set up with a clear line of sight, the researchers wrote. 

To solve these problems, the researchers designed sensing rings for each finger that can capture precise motion and finger position while letting the hands move naturally. The rings can detect both signs that involve movement, like the words for “dance,” “fly” and “sun,” and signs that are held still, like “I” and “you.”

“These advances suggest that [the device could enable] barrier-free public translation systems for unseen users and unrestricted daily assistive interfaces,” the authors wrote in the study. 

The authors are affiliated with Yonsei University, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology, among others. While the technology is still experimental, the authors wrote that the technology has the potential to ease communication difficulties. The underlying idea could also help improve controls for other systems, like virtual or augmented reality.

“Beyond sign language translation, the ring-type, wireless, and modular architecture of (wirelessly connected, ring-type sign language translators) may also be extended to other gesture-driven applications such as virtual or augmented reality control, touchless device interfaces, or rehabilitation monitoring systems where fine-grained hand movement tracking is essential,” they wrote.





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