The Australian A-League may be young, but it’s going from strength to strength since its inception in 2005. It is currently one of the top domestic football competitions sitting comfortably alongside the NRL and the AFL.
Where to stream the A-League online
Fox Sports has been the exclusive broadcasting partner of the A-League from day one. But since it’s not overly popular, with only 7% of Australians subscribed, the public free-to-air Network Ten secured the shared rights. TenPlay simulcasts the coverage of the Saturday fixtures and the Socceroos fixtures via its online platform One.
In New Zealand, the A-League matches are televised by Sky Sport.
The UK soccer buffs and Australian expats can watch and stream the A-League via BT Sport ESPN and BT Sport Live.
In the US, you can watch the full match broadcasts via ESPN3 and ESPN Deportes (Spanish commentary). Fox Sports 2 televises some games, too.
The European viewers can tune in to Eurosport, DAZN, BT Sport, or Viasat. In Africa, check Kwese Sports, whereas internationally, more than 173 countries air the A-league matches – either full match broadcasts or highlights.
Fortunately, cord-cutters are not limited to contract-only services as alternative streaming media have come into play, such as Bet365, Sport 24, OZ, and Sling TV.
The betting site offers live streams for free if you have a deposited account with them ($10). But you are not required to spend your money on betting to keep streaming, which could make it a viable option if nothing else fits your bill.
Why use a VPN to stream the A-League games
Although the A-League live streams are available in many countries, all streaming providers are region-restricted based on their license. For example, if you want to use Bet365 to live-stream the A-League, you can’t watch any game if you are in Australia, but can do so from England, South America, or the US, and you get the point.
Likewise, if you are a Sling TV subscriber, you can only stream your sports events when you are in the US. But you lose your access while you are abroad.
The good news is there’s an easy dodge for the geo-block – a VPN.
A Virtual Private Network lets you anchor your Internet connection to the country of your choice. If your virtual IP address is tethered in the UK, for instance, you will be able to stream the A-League via Bet365. In the same vein, connect to a US-based VPN server and stream your Sling TV bypassing its geo-blocks.
The best part is a VPN bundle has a bandwagon of benefits besides letting you swap your IP address. Since a VPN encrypts your traffic, you get an extra layer of privacy and security because:
- Your Internet Service Provider can’t monitor what you’re up to online
- Sites you visit only see your VPN IP address, not your real location or identity
- Your traffic is secured against Man-in-the-Middle attacks and honeypots
- You bypass your ISP throttling when streaming and gaming online
- You can easily circumvent your school or office firewall
How to stream the A-League with a VPN
- Get yourself a decent VPN. If in doubt, check my list of recommended providers below.
- Subscribe to a VPN plan.
- Install the VPN software on your device and launch it.
- Connect to a server in the country of your choice (for example, Australia for TenPlay or One, in the UK for Bet365, the US for ESPN3, or Sling TV).
- Clear your browser’s cache.
- Go to your streaming site and log in.
- You are all set to live-stream the A-League – from anywhere in the world.
Tip: steer well clear of free VPNs. They leak and trade your data while providing sub-par speeds that result in poor quality streams and frequent buffering.
Best VPNs to stream the A-League live online
As you can see, free live streaming options for the A-League are accessible with a VPN even if you are outside of Australia. Just connect to an Australian VPN server and stream via One or TenPlay as if you were in your home country. Feel free to drop me a line if you have any questions or feedback on using one of the VPNs I listed.
CyberGhost
- Precise locations
- Very large VPN server network
- Offers a 45-day money-back guarantee
PureVPN
- Excellent client with pre-configured modes for streaming, P2P, privacy
- Kill switch
- Support for wide range of protocols, including OpenVPN
Hide.me
- Lifetime free plan available
- Port forwarding available
- Certified zero logs