How to Watch the 2024 Paris Olympics Online for Free

The Summer Olympics are here, but you don’t have to be in Paris to catch the action.

Media companies around the globe pay big bucks for the rights to air the Games. In the US, that’s NBC, so streamers will need Peacock or a live TV streaming service with access to NBC. For those who don’t need another streaming subscription, though, a VPN can help you tap into some free options from the around the globe.

Here’s all the information you need to watch the Paris Olympics online for free.

How Long Do the Paris Olympics 2024 Last?

The Paris Olympics run from July 26 to Aug. 11. The Games were officially declared “open” during the Opening Ceremony on July 26. The Closing Ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 11 at 3 p.m. ET.

How to Stream the 2024 Paris Olympics for Free

In the US, you can watch all the Olympic action live on channels like NBC, USA, and MSNBC. If you have cut the cord with cable TV, you can catch the Games on NBC’s streaming service Peacock, whose subscription starts at $7.99 a month.

But if you wish to stream the Olympics without spending a dime, there’s an option for that, too. The BBC iPlayer and several other platforms are streaming Paris 2024 for free.

• Australia: 9Now – FREE (Whole event)

• UK: BBC iPlayer – FREE (more than 250 hours of live coverage)

• Canada: CBC Gem – FREE (Whole event on multiple platforms, app only)

• The Netherlands: NOS – FREE (more than 200 hours of live coverage)

• France: France TV – FREE (200 hours of live coverage)

• Germany: ARD/ZDF – FREE (Shared live coverage)

• Italy: RAI – FREE (200 hours of live coverage)

• Belgium: RTBF (200 hours of live coverage) 

However, these platforms are geo-restricted to their respective countries, and accessing them from any other location would require a virtual private network such as ExpressVPN, which PCMag deemed the best for global location spoofers in our roundup of the best VPN services. VPN services can help you unlock geo-restricted content by hiding your IP address and connecting you to a secure server in a location of your choice.

ExpressVPN

A privacy-respecting VPN for road warriors.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to watch the Summer Olympics for free online. We’re using 9Now in Australia for demonstration. 

• Sign up for a streaming-friendly VPN.

• Download the VPN app on your device (PC or smartphone).

• Launch the app and pick a server in the country of your chosen platform (Australia, in this case). 

• After establishing a connection, visit your preferred website (9Now) and start streaming the Paris Olympics.

Note: If the website asks for access to your location, make sure to hit disallow. And if the website requires you to sign up, make sure to enter a local postal code. Also, use the translation services provided by your browser for easier navigation. 

Of course, not all VPNs for streaming are free. But many of these services offer free trial periods and money-back guarantees, which you can use to watch the Olympics live.

Check out the full schedule so you don’t miss your favorite event, and make sure to turn on motion smoothing (but just for the Games).

How To Turn On Motion Smoothing to Watch the Olympics