The 6 Best Streaming Services For Live Sports (And What They Cost)

Watching sports is undoubtedly one of the most popular pastimes worldwide, but it's now harder than ever. Back in the era of cable, one (albeit high) monthly payment gave you access to every channel, and all you had to do was tune in at the right time to watch a sporting event live. At most, you needed to purchase a sports package, but watching sports was always a breeze.

However, with the rise of streaming, the way we watch sports is broken and isn't getting any better. Gone are the days of one, easy-to-access hub for every sport. Now, companies all have their own streaming services, taking their broadcast rights to their own platform and locking viewership behind a paywall. Making matters even worse, those rights simply go to the highest bidder, so where you go to watch certain sports is constantly changing. 

One day, you'll find NBA games on Max, but a few months later, Prime Video or another suitor will outbid Warner Bros. Discovery for the rights. So, unless you are staying up-to-date on the latest news surrounding every entertainment company's acquisitions, finding where to watch your favorite sport can be easier said than done. To clear up any potential confusion, let's break down the best streaming services for live sports, taking into account live-TV services like YouTube TV and dedicated streaming platforms like Peacock.

First up is a bit of a dark horse: DirecTV Stream. It may not be the first streaming service that comes to mind, but much like the cable of old, it puts just about every sport onto one platform. It essentially is cable, just running through your internet instead of a satellite, but they do have an option for that.

With DirecTV Stream, you choose what channels you want. There are four different subscription tiers, each with their own set of programs. Unfortunately, the sports channels are split up between three of the options, so if you want access to everything, you'll need to fork over a bit more monthly cash.

For $69.99 a month, you'll get DirecTV Stream's basic package, including access to ESPN, ESPN2, Fox Sports, SportsGrid, and your local channels. This will do you just fine for most major events like the NBA Finals, the Super Bowl, and your local NFL team's games. For $74.99, DirecTV Stream gives you all of those plus specialty sports channels, like the Tennis Channel, MLB Network, NBA TV, Regional Sports Networks, and collegiate networks (SEC, ACC, and Big Ten). This is also where the rest of the ESPN network (ESPNU and News) come into the mix. Bump the price up to $104.99 per month, and DirecTV Stream adds the NHL Network, CBS Sports Network, Fox Sports 2, and the Sportsman Channel.

Another live TV service that's great for sports fans is YouTube TV. Unlike DirecTV, YouTube only has one base plan, which features a surprising amount of sports channels. If you want more, you'll purchase them as add-ons to the plan. However, YouTube TV's base plan includes NBC Sports, ESPN (including 2, U, and News), Fox Sports (1 and 2), NBA TV, NFL Network, CBS Sports Network, and collegiate networks (ACC, SEC, and Big Ten) for $72.99. If you're a new user, you can score a deal for $57.99/month for the first three months.

If that's not enough sports, you can also customize your YouTube TV subscription to include more with added costs. They offer an NFL Sunday Ticket add-on for $349 for a year's subscription, or a Sunday Ticket and NFL RedZone combo for $389 per year. While they are costly, they'll give you access to every NFL game and multiple ways to watch. There's also a Sports Plus add-on. For an extra $10.99/month, you get Fox Soccer Plus, NFL RedZone, the Tennis Channel, beIN Sports, FanDuel channels, and many fighting channels. It also includes less-popular sports like a Billiards channel, MavTV for motocross, and Poker Go.

If all that sounds like too much, YouTube TV also has multiview for live sports, allowing you to watch multiple events and channels at the same time. And the platform's exclusive sports features help you easily find and keep track of key plays, stats, and fantasy football statistics.

Sports fans have undoubtedly thought, "Why isn't there a streaming service solely dedicated to sports?" Well, there is, and it's called fubo. Much like the others, it's another live TV service, but one focused on channels that distribute live sports.

When it comes to streaming sports, it doesn't get much more comprehensive than fubo. With the $79.99/month Pro subscription, you get all of the basics, including ESPN, Fox Sports, NFL, SEC, and Big Ten Networks. But even with the most affordable option, fubo includes specialty channels like Bleav Football, Swerve Combat, Boxing TV, ACL Cornhole TV, and a tremendous amount of Fubo Sports channels. Upgrade to Elite for $89.99/month, and you get NBA TV, NHL Network, MLB Network, Zona Futbol, Tennis Channel, Pac-12 Network, ESPNU, and ESPNews.

Then, we get to the add-ons, which fubo has plenty of for sports fans. Sports Plus with NFL RedZone costs an extra $10.99/month and gets you most of the Elite package's channels plus NFL RedZone, MLB Strike Zone, and other niche options like Strongman competitions and pickleball. The International Sports Plus nets you Fox Soccer Plus and plenty of Latino channels for an extra $6.99. Adventure Plus is another $4.99/month for outdoor sports, and fubo even offers subscriptions for NBA League Pass and FOX Nation for $14.99 and $5.99/month respectively.

Rounding out the best live TV streaming services to keep you entertained with sports is Hulu + Live TV. The service combines Hulu's on-demand library with over 95 live TV channels, and like the others already mentioned, it has way more sports channels than anyone could need.

Hulu + Live TV with ads costs $76.99 per month. The price is on the same tier as both DirecTV and YouTube, and you essentially get the same channels. The subscription gives you access to the ACC, Big Ten, SEC, CBS, MLB, and NFL Networks. You'll also get every ESPN channel, Fox Sports 1 and 2, and the Tennis Channel 2. It's worth noting that NBA TV is a noticeable exception not included in any Hulu + Live TV plan, but you can still catch certain, high-profile games on ABC, ESPN, and TNT. If you want an ad-free plan, the cost jumps to $89.99 per month.

However, what makes Hulu a draw for sports lovers is that each subscription comes with ESPN+. The ESPN streaming service adds even more live-streaming sports, including soccer, combat sports, tennis, and golf. Plus, you get ESPN+ Originals documentaries, interviews, and shows. You can also throw in a sports add-on for an extra $9.99/month to get FanDuel channels, MLB Strike Zone, NFL Red Zone, the Tennis Channel, MAVTV, Sportsman Channel, and Outdoor Channel. All in all, the combination of Hulu with ESPN+ makes it a must-have streaming service, especially if you love sports.

Moving on to more traditional streaming services, Paramount+ is up next. While many would quickly overlook it in the grand scheme of the industry, it offers a surprising amount of sports content. Well, that is, if you are a fan of football, both in the American and international sense. 

Paramount+ may not have as big of a collection as the live TV services do, but fans of American football and international soccer may want to take note. Given that CBS is one of the company's largest subsidiaries, Paramount+ is essentially the one-stop-shop for the entire CBS Sports Network. For $5.99 a month with limited ads, you can stream the NFL on CBS and the UEFA Champions League live, as well as the UEFA Europa and National Women's Soccer leagues. Ad-free viewing will cost you $11.99 a month, but it also adds the PGA Tour, Big Ten football, and March Madness to your viewing library. 

Plus, since it's a traditional streaming service, you don't have to worry about whether or not your TV has an app. You can get Paramount+ on your Roku streaming device, stream it on your Vizio TV, watch on your phone, or a gaming console. Whatever device you use, Paramount+ is likely already there, which isn't the case for others like DirecTV.

What Paramount+ is for CBS, Peacock is for NBC, so a subscription to Peacock Premium puts the entirety of the NBC Sports Network at your fingertips. Peacock Premium's biggest draw is undoubtedly the Olympics, as NBC retains rights to the largest international sporting event, but that's not all a subscription will get you. Peacock also streams Sunday Night Football, the French Open, WWE, Premier League, IndyCar, and NASCAR. You'll also get golf events like the U.S. Open and a plethora of less-popular sports, like cycling, figure skating, horse racing, rugby, SuperMotocross, and snow sports. And if you're a diehard fan for either a Big Ten team or Notre Dame, you'll have difficulties finding a better suitor than Peacock, which streams Big Ten Football, Men's and Women's Basketball, and Notre Dame Football and Hockey.

The streaming service also offers 24/7 sports channels with NBC Sports, Premier League TV, WWE, and GolfPass, and plenty of sports documentaries and Peacock originals. Peacock Premium costs $5.99 a month or $59.99 annually with ads. If you catch a sale, NBC offers the annual subscription for as low as $19.99/year. Premium Plus will get rid of the advertisements for $11.99/month or $119.99/year.