Champions League final will not be free to watch in UK for first time in modern era

    https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/may/18/champions-league-final-will-not-be-free-to-watch-in-uk-arsenal-psg-europa-conference?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

    Posted by Alarming-Safety3200

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    31 Comments

    1. DavidSwifty on

      Disgraceful man.

      They price them out of going to games then they price them out of watching at home and they have the audacity to question why people are pirating more.

    2. CatchFactory on

      God so so shit. And they’ve taken loads of the FA Cup of free to air this year.. And everything is on various different streaming services which mean. If you wanted to have access to all possible watchable English football you’re looking at close to £80 a month minimum.

      Just pure shit, there’ll come a day when the world cup is not on free to air, and they wonder why people stream illegally

    3. Mickxomatosis on

      Apparently UEFA aren’t happy but their own contract only states that “best endeavours” should be made to ensure the finals are available for free. I’ve signed terms and conditions for flappy bird clones with more locked-down legals than that!

    4. rufiohnistram on

      Do they really think doing this will mean people will take out TNT subscriptions in droves? People will just stream it and then never ever consider getting a subscription.

    5. TheCulturalBomb on

      Abysmal, even since the BT acquisition rights they made it free on YouTube. Somehow I’ll find another way to watch it.. fuck TNT.

    6. Give_Me_Your_Pierogi on

      Pretty much UEFA”s fault, as they used to have a specific free to air package they were selling? I’m surprised the final isn’t covered in BBC highlights deal

    7. Background_Ad_8569 on

      Theres a very simple way to put a stop to this nonsense, it’s been an option for years but no one seems to have cottoned on. Cancel your subscriptions and season tickets, dont watch it at all.
      You aren’t being forced by some law to pay ridiculous sums of money to follow your team, you are doing it wilfully.

    8. Electrical_Mango_489 on

      This is TNT having a tantrum because they’ve lost the rights to Paramount.

    9. ruffianrevolution on

      Must be a coincidence that footy is becoming more about the investors than fans at the same time more yanks are getting involved…

    10. flemishbiker88 on

      VPN and RTE Player it will be free to watch there and commentatory will be In English

    11. Glad_Necessary_665 on

      Football supporters have just bent over for this sort of stuff in the past 20 years.

    12. “Kids don’t watch football anymore!” Yeah the older generations watched more because so many free to air networks had full matches or at least highlights. It’s all about merchandising and broadcasting fees now.

    13. MapDiscombobulated1 on

      Utterly deplorable, but utterly predictable – as soon as Sport started putting itself behind paywalls I’m surprised it took them this long to get to this one. 

    14. LovlehKebab on

      No great loss, my interest in CL football died when ITV lost it to Sky Sports.

    15. Beneficial-Pitch-430 on

      TNT are fucks. They bought Eurosport too meaning basically the only sport I ever watched which was the Le Mans 24hr, which has been free to view for as long as I can remember.. is now a paid subscription.

    16. Realistic-Tip-5416 on

      It’s getting quite ridiculous how inaccessible football is becoming. Need about 3 or 4 subscriptions, can’t watch 3pm games etc.

    17. Stopping people from having to watch Arsenal should be considered a public service.

    18. Used_Function_974 on

      I think the FA cup semi final was a more outrageous game to paywall.

      It is the national cup competetion FFS

    19. cmereiwancha on

      Is RTE player blocked over there? It wasn’t 10 years ago. It’ll be on RTE sport for free.

    20. TimboJimbo81 on

      Biting the hand that feeds them…footfall for advertisement would be massive if free to view, probably able to generate more revenue that way as well

    21. I thought the CL final legally had to be broadcast free, like the World Cup and the Euros?

    22. Practical-City5528 on

      Watching VARParis vs. Arsenal should pay us to watch not the other way around

    23. Was it last year? It is also a real shame that the Tour de France is no longer on ITV. International events are still significant to people in the UK, especially when they have always been there to see. I guess I can watch some highlights on youtube later, but it isn’t quite the same.

      There is just too much sport, let alone the TV shows, you could spend hundreds a month and still not see everything you want to see. Highlights it is then.