While Traveling

When you’re a sports fan, rarely anything can frustrate you more than not being able to stream a sports event. You sit back, ready to watch your favorite game, only to get that “Sorry, this content is not available in your region” message. It’s even more frustrating if you’re paying for a particular streaming service but can’t access it while traveling. And it’s all because of geo-restrictions.

Netflix is one of the noteworthy examples of geo-restriction implementation. While the majority of countries can use Netflix, the number of available shows differs. A similar situation applies to sports events. You might need to purchase additional channels to watch sports matches through your TV. However, when it comes to online streaming the popular duels between players, you can notice the same exclusiveness level.

What are geo-restrictions?

Geo-restrictions are usually government-induced regulations that prevent certain countries from accessing content. When a geo-blocked website detects an IP address from outside the country, it simply locks the user out. However, governments are not the only ones that impose such limitations. Some digital services might focus on their target audience instead of attempting to reach people outside of their scope. Hence, they block access to clients that are not in their targeted regions.

However, geo-blocks mainly happen because local broadcasters don’t have deals with every single country and streaming channel. They simply don’t hold the rights to all the games and matches out there. Due to differing copyright agreements, shows or matches become unavailable in specific regions.

However, a similar problem can exist even within a particular country. If a TV cable provider holds the rights to a specific local sports event, it will only broadcast it on one of its cable channels. That means that no streaming service in the region can broadcast it as well. This restriction is called a blackout restriction.

Which Sports Streaming Services Have Geo-Restrictions?

Well, precisely because of the facts above, most sports channels have geo-restrictions. For instance, if you want to watch Sky Sports, you can do it only if you reside in the UK.

Likewise, ESPN+ is only available in the US. So, if you’re in the UK, you can’t access ESPN+ to watch NHL, NBA, MLS, MLB, and many other American games. You can watch those on Sky Sports, but you need to pay for a subscription.

The same goes for European sports in the US. For instance, you can’t watch the UEFA Champions League unless you pay for a CBS All Access subscription. But again, even if you pay for a subscription, you can’t watch your favorite games while traveling. Luckily, there’s a perfect solution to those problems.

During the pandemic, sports fans had to settle with re-watching old golden moments of their favorite matches. The creative community managed to find a country that allowed sporting events to happen. Belarus Vysheyshaya Liga started the 2020 season with an event between Energetik BGU Minsk and BATE Borisov. While it is healthy to get back on the horse and do the things you love, even this match was not easy to access. Users had to find an appropriate VPN with a server in Belarus. Without it, such entertainment would be left behind closed doors. And during this pandemic, we have more than enough of that.

Unlock All Your Desired Live Sports Events with a VPN

A VPN for sports streaming can help you bypass geo-restrictions while streaming, no matter where you are on the planet. You don’t have to worry about missing your favorite games – ever. That’s because a VPN will mask your IP address, making it seem as if you were accessing geo-blocked content locally. Every VPN provider has a vast network of servers around the world. When you connect to a VPN, it connects you to one of its VPN servers. That’s how you virtually appear to be in a different geographical location. Of course, different providers have different speeds, prices, locations, etc. so it’s always best to do your research on who the best provider is. This virtual shield vpn review is a good place to start.

VPNs mean you can access any sports channel in the world as if you were a local. The best part? No one will know you’re doing it. Even your ISP won’t know you’re using a VPN. Apart from masking your IP, it will also hide your entire online activity. That also comes in handy for your online security in general. VPN technology isn’t just useful for the consumer; businesses are also leveraging it to their own advantage through VPN Servers which provide privacy and encryption without sacrificing speed or performance – these services are available from the likes of M247 and have helped out both VPN providers and organizations.

How to Watch Live Sports with a VPN?

It’s very simple. You first need to choose a reliable VPN provider, making sure they have a broad server coverage in all your wanted locations. You’ll also want to make sure they have a no-logs policy, military-grade encryption, and fast speeds. Look for servers optimized for streaming so that you don’t experience any frustrating buffering.

As an additional benefit, the VPN will block all attempts to intercept your connection. As a result, VPN is not only the tool for entertainment but also one of the fighters to battle malware and spies on your behalf. On the last note, it is good to see that many online services open doors and revoke the standard geo-blocks. For instance, ABC’S iView had decided to make its Australian content available worldwide. Maybe more sports matches will become available worldwide as well?