Sport on TVSport on digital

Digital TV offers sports fans a number of sporting channels covering a wide range of events. Your choice of channels depends on the service and package you go for. Some channels are included in basic digital packages; others you have to pay extra for. But some are better than others, and it can be difficult to know which ones you want.

Sky and Virgin Media have the most sport channels by far, though Tiscali TV is a close third in terms of premium sports content. With basic Setanta packages now available on Freeview, Top Up TV Anytime and BT Vision, premium sports are available on most platforms.

Basic channels

• Free-to-air channels such as BBC and ITV, which are free to watch, are shown on Freesat and Freeview. Most of the Freeview channels come as standard in the basic packages for Virgin Media, Tiscali TV, BT Vision and Top Up TV Anytime.
• Subscription packages Digital services such as Sky and Virgin Media offer several premium sports packages on a pay-monthly basis.

Premium Channels

The Ryder Cup remains on free-to-air

Premium channels cost extra on top of your monthly digital TV subscription, but offer the widest range of live sports. Premium channels such as Sky Sports and Setanta Sports own exclusive rights to many key sporting events, and sports coverage runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week on some channels.

• Sports packages Most digital TV service providers offer some sort of premium sports option. Sky, Virgin Media and Tiscali TV show a range of Sky Sports channels, and Setanta Sports 1 is now available on Freeview, Top Up TV Anytime and BT Vision. Sky and Virgin Media’s Setanta Sports packages feature several dedicated sports channels. Tiscali now also shows three Setanta channels. Our table (see 'Sports packages and costs') tells you what channels are available on which services.
• Standalone channels Instead of adding a whole package of channels to your standard subscription, you can add some channels, such as MUTV (Manchester United TV) and Chelsea TV, on their own. These cost about £6 per month and show live interviews and dedicated club matches.
• Pay-per-view Some events, such as football matches and boxing, are available on Sky Box Office on a pay-per-view basis. This means that you can pay a bit extra to watch select content on-demand. Sports like boxing and wrestling title fights are often on pay-per-view. BT Vision has also launched a non-live pay on-demand service for pre-recorded football matches and golf events.

High definition sports on TV

High definition TV offers you a more detailed and life-like picture than standard TV. Sky Sports offers some action in HD but, though you can sign up to Sky Sports via Virgin or Tiscali, the Sky Sports HD channels are only available to Sky customers.

Sky is broadcasting all its 92 Premiership matches in HD, as well as a selection of matches from the Coca-Cola League, Carling Cup and UEFA Champions League. Watching HD sports isn’t cheap though – you’ll need to sign up to Sky’s HD service on top of your standard subscription.

You can watch a limited amount of sports content on BBC HD and ITV HD free if you have Freesat from BBC/ITV (joint-venture), but you should bear in mind the standard channel line-up is different from what's available on Freeview. Virgin Media also offers access to BBC HD and an on-demand HD film library, but an additional monthly fee applies if you don't choose Virgin's top TV package.