Sport on TV Watch sport free

Under the Television Broadcasting Regulations 2000, some sporting events are protected, which means full coverage or highlights must be shown on free-to-air TV (BBC1, BBC2, ITV, Channel 4 and Five).

You can watch them free of charge on your normal TV, or pay a one-off fee to get Freesat, Freesat from Sky or Freeview. These offer the five basic channels, but you can also take advantage of interactive options where they are available.

Group A events, such as the FIFA World Cup, the Olympics and Wimbledon, have to be shown in full. And you can watch highlights or partial coverage of Group B events, such as the Ryder Cup.

Group A – must be shown on terrestrial TV

The Rubgy World Cup final is show on free-to-air TV by law

• Olympic Games
• FIFA World Cup Finals tournament
• FA Cup Final
• Scottish FA Cup Final (in Scotland)
• The Grand National
• The Derby
• Wimbledon tennis finals
• European Football Championship Finals tournament
• Rugby League Challenge Cup Final
• Rugby World Cup Final

Group B – highlights must be shown on terrestrial TV

Highlights of English cricket matches remain protected

• Cricket Test matches played in England
• Non-finals play in the Wimbledon tournament
• All other matches in the Rugby World Cup Finals tournament
• Six Nations Rugby tournament matches involving home countries
• The Commonwealth Games
• The World Championships in Athletics
• Cricket World Cup – the final, semi-finals and matches involving home nations’ teams
• The Ryder Cup
• The Open Golf Championship

You can see the full list of protected events on the Ofcom website.

If TV coverage isn’t protected, the owners of a sports event or competition – such as the English Premier League – can sell the broadcasting rights.

Sometimes the rights are sold to the BBC or ITV, enabling fans to watch the event free of charge.