What is ESPN?
ESPN (formerly ESPN+) has been the place to watch sports since its launch in 1979. However, ESPN offers something different and gives subscribers the ability to stream live sports without cable TV.
Live sports on ESPN can be viewed almost anywhere with mobile apps, web browsers, and game consoles. If that’s not enough, you can watch on Apple TV, Amazon FireTV, Google Chromecast, Android TV, and Roku.
Its new price plans sees two options: ESPN Select and ESPN Unlimited. Since the recent rebrand, anyone who had ESPN+ is automatically placed on the Select plan, with an additional cost for the Unlimited one.
Of course, a streaming service is only as good as its content. In this area, ESPN offers a lot of action-packed content for sports fans, as GOAL takes you through everything you need to know.
What sports are available on ESPN?
The service doesn’t offer all of the live coverage of sports on ESPN’s cable networks. However, ESPN Plus does give subscribers a comprehensive range of sports with a variety of professional and college league games.
READ MORE: The best streaming services for sports fans
Baseball
Getty ImagesIn the 2025 MLB season, ESPN will stream each MLB team at least ten times. Naturally, this means a lot of coverage, and those who want to look back at classic games will be able to dive into the MLB archives and revisit coverage.
It is worth noting that local market blackout restrictions do apply to out-of-market games.
With that said, this is a significant offering, and ESPN also includes coverage of the Little League World Series.
Hockey
Getty ImagesESPN boasts 1,000 out-of-market NHL games from every team, all season long. 75 of these games are exclusive to ESPN, and there is a mixture of games from the Eastern and Western Conferences. There is also college ice hockey on offer for those who want to see up-and-coming talent. As a result, hockey fans should have no trouble finding something to watch.
Much like the MLB, the NHL is subject to blackout restrictions, so if a game is broadcasted locally in your market, it is unlikely you’ll find it on ESPN.
Soccer
If you want to see the best of European and US soccer, ESPN is a compelling service. It has over 350 out-of-market games, including the top tier of football in Europe like Germany’s Bundesliga League and Spain’s La Liga.
The FA Cup is featured on the streaming platform, and this means that viewers can see England’s best teams, like Manchester City as well as underdog stories, like Wrexham AFC. For those who enjoy a German knock-out competition, there is coverage of the DFL Supercup.
Fans with a US focus can enjoy US Open games on ESPN.
Basketball
ESPN has plenty of basketball games, with 200 live college conference games. These games are from 18 different conferences in the US. This means that viewers can enjoy a whole variety of stakes, and there are six women’s college basketball championship games included in the service.
Viewers can get involved in the action with a 'Bracket Predictor' that analyses the games. Naturally, anyone who enjoys fantasy sports will see this as a significant bonus.
Football
Getty ImagesCollege football, including the NCAA, is heavily featured on ESPN, and the service offers hundreds of live games. These games are from a variety of conferences like Ohio Valley and MVFC. There is also access to the Football Bowl Subdivision and the Football Championship Subdivision games as part of the offering.
Those who enjoy the NFL can not watch live games but can catch up on the highlights and get expert commentary by watching NFL PrimeTime.
Boxing
Getty ImagesThere are many Top Rank Boxing fights on the service, including main events and undercard matches. There is also the opportunity to check out re-airs of all Top Rank matches and some PPV (pay-per-view) events.
Tennis
Getty ImagesWhile every tennis fan will have a favourite tournament, few would want to miss Wimbledon, the US Open, or the Australian Open. Fortunately, ESPN has coverage of all these sporting events, including the men's and women’s singles and doubles competitions.
The only major competition missing is the French Open, but viewers may find consolation in the US college tennis matches that are available.
Golf
Getty ImagesESPN has hours on hours of PGA coverage. This includes Featured Group and Featured Hole Coverage throughout the tournament. Additionally, there is a new lead-in program to Saturday and Sunday’s coverage called PGA Championship with No Laying Up.
Other Live Sports
Getty ImagesIf all that sport wasn’t enough, ESPN also has live coverage of swimming, diving, track and field, lacrosse, and rugby. Interestingly, Super Rugby, the Lion Series, and Rugby Championship are available to subscribers.
Cricket fans aren’t forgotten either with New Zealand Cricket and Cricket Ireland matches.
ESPN subscription plans and pricing
ESPN Select and Unlimited are available monthly or annually, as follows.
| Package | Cost |
|---|---|
| Select Monthly | $11.99 |
| Select Annual | $119.99 |
| Unlimited Monthly | $29.99 |
| Unlimited Annually | $299.99 |
Another option for the service is to buy it as part of theDisney Bundle. This gives viewers Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN from $29.99 per month.
| Package | Monthly cost | Includes Ads |
|---|---|---|
| Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle | $29.99 | ✓ |
| Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle Premium | $38.99 | ✘ (in select linear content) |
Of course, most providers often update their deals, so it’s always worth checking what's on offer.
How to sign up for ESPN
Signing up for ESPN is relatively easy, but here is a step-by-step guide to avoid any confusion.
- Visit the ESPN homepage.
- Click “Sign Up Now”.
- Click Sign-Up to create an account.
- You will be asked for your payment information.
- Check all your information is correct and click “Buy ESPN”
- A page will notify you of the successful transaction and you can begin watching.
Watching live sports on ESPN
Getty ImagesThe app looks similar to other streaming services like Netflix and Disney+. Simply click on a sport that interests you and you can start live streaming.
Sports can be watched at 60fps in 1080p or downgraded to 720p when needed. On top of that, the service can be streamed from three devices simultaneously.
ESPN offers an array of highlight shows, replays of classics, and the latest games available.
It’s also worth noting that through the likes of “Bracket Predictor”, fans can interact with Fantasy Leagues.
How to watch UFC PPVs and Fight Night events on ESPN
Getty ImagesThere are plenty of PPV events on ESPN, making UFC fans happy. The PPV events cost $79.99. For those who don’t want to pay more, Fight Nights are typically available through a standard subscription.
ESPN pros and cons
Naturally, sports preferences will be a factor in the pros and cons for ESPN, but here are the key points.
Pros
- Access to a wide variety of sports across the world.
- Fantastic coverage of college sports.
- Great UFC and Boxing choices.
- “Bracket Predictor” to help Fantasy sports fans.
Cons
- No live NFL or NBA games.
- Additional PPV fees for fights.
- ESPN is not included in the pricing.
ESPN compared to other live sports streaming services
ESPN has an incredible range of sports, and with this in mind, there is plenty for most sports fans. It is also priced at a rate that is cheaper than many of its competitors.
With that said, Football and Basketball fans may want live coverage of their favourite teams. The likes of Fubo and Sling TV offer live streams of the sports, but it comes at a cost.
Here is a comparison of the offerings in some key areas:
| ESPN Plus | Fubo | Sling TV | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly Price | From $11.99 | From $84.99 | From $45.99 |
| Offline Downloads | Yes | No | No |
| On-demand Content | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Live Sports Streaming | Yes | Yes | Yes |
The bottom line
ESPN offers a huge number of live sports, highlights, and opportunities to watch PPV fights at a relatively cheap rate, especially if it is purchased as part of a bundle deal.
Although it doesn’t have live coverage of the NFL or NBA, it will be enjoyed by most sports enthusiasts. Particularly, by those who already have ESPN as part of their cable package.
You can find out more about ESPN and how it adds to your current sports packages here.
Other streaming services with ESPN
There are a number of different ways to watch ESPN besides going direct to the source.
ESPN is available via a number of different streaming services including Fubo, DIRECTV and Sling TV.
