How to Watch the Bundesliga Online in 2020: Toooooooor!!!
The Bundesliga is Germany’s top soccer league, and some of the best players in the world make up the teams. From Bayern Munich to Borussia Dortmund, 18 soccer teams compete to become the champion of Germany. It has been around since the 1960s and is one of the most watched soccer leagues in the world, sitting behind only the English Premier League.
Normally, the Bundesliga season runs from August through May, but the 2019-2020 season was suspended in early March due to COVID-19.
After pausing for more than two months, the Bundesliga season resumed on Saturday, May 16 — the first major European sports league to restart after the shutdown. Each team will play nine more matches (except for the Werder Bremen and Eintracht Frankfurt teams, which have 10 matches), and the season will end on Saturday, June 27.
The final 82 games are being played in stadiums without spectators, so most fans will have to tune in from home, instead. The Bundesliga games are broadcast live in about 200 countries, but if you’re a cord-cutter or traveling around, you’ll need an alternative from the traditional TV. In this guide, we’re going to show you how to view the Bundesliga online.
If you have never watched Bundesliga matches before, or you’re not completely sure about the rules, then here is a quick rundown to get you familiar with the game.
The soccer league is set up so that all the teams play each other twice during the season, once at home and once away. The points system is as follows: winning teams earn three points, and those that draw get one point each. The team that accumulates the most points by the end of the season becomes the league’s champion.
When all is said and done, the top four teams in the table are automatically entered into the UEFA Champions League, and those that finish in fifth and sixth place are entered into the UEFA Europa League. There, they compete against other European teams that have placed in the same tiers of their respective leagues.
Still, for every winner, there has to be a loser, or in this case, losers. The two teams that have the least points are relegated to the second division, the “2. Bundesliga.”
However, to throw a wrench into the works, the team that placed 16th in the Bundesliga has to play against the third runner-up from the 2. Bundesliga, basically fighting over the remaining slot in the first division.
Watch the Bundesliga Online
Fox Sports has broadcasting rights to show Bundesliga games in the United States, so getting your weekly fix of German soccer may not be too much of a headache.
If you live in the U.S. but prefer Spanish over English, UniMás and Fox Deportes will broadcast the Spanish-language commentary. You can also follow the Bundesliga via Sportsnet in Canada, on BT Sport in the UK, and on Movistar+ in Spain.
If you have a cable television subscription that includes the Fox Sports channels, you can use the Fox Sports GO app for free. All you have to do is sign in with your TV provider, and you can view it on your mobile device. For this guide, though, we’ll stick to the avenues that don’t have an umbilical cord.
Watch the Bundesliga on Hulu
You can view Bundesliga games by getting a Hulu + Live TV subscription. With it, you’ll get both Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2, as well as ESPN sports channels as an added bonus. It costs $45.99 per month, but there is a free seven-day trial available for new customers.
Once you’ve signed up, you’ll be able to enjoy Hulu on many devices, including mobile, SmartTV, game consoles and so on. Check out our guide on how to watch Hulu on your TV if you want to see it on the big screen.
That said, Hulu is only available to U.S. residents, so if you’re out of the country, you’re going to need to change your location with a virtual private network. Our best VPN for Hulu guide can help you with that, though.
Watch the Bundesliga on FuboTV
FuboTV’s live streaming package has more than 100 channels, including some sports options, such as Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, Fox Soccer and beIN Sports. FuboTV claims to offer more than 30,000 sporting events per year, with the majority of them being soccer.
It requires a paid subscription, starting at $55.99 per month for 90 channels and going up to $59.99 per month for 110 channels. You can watch it on mobile, tablet, streaming devices and SmartTVs. To make your FubuTV subscription more worthwhile, though, you can also watch events from the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA. Plus, there’s a free trial available.
Like Hulu, though, FuboTV is only available in the U.S., so you’re going to need to get a U.S. IP address if you’re out of the country.
Watch the Bundesliga on DirecTV
DirecTV is another service you can use to live stream the Bundesliga. Its streaming package starts at $59.99 per month, but that’s just for the basic setup.
To get access to the channels airing German soccer, you’ll need DirecTV’s Ultimate package. That costs $84.99 per month, which is quite a jump up, but you’ll have access to more than 250 channels. Thirty of those are sports channels and include Fox Sports.
Once you’ve set up your subscription, you can watch on your mobile device through the app. Once again, though, DirecTV isn’t available outside of the U.S., so you’ll need to spoof your location if you’re not already there.
Watch the Bundesliga on Sling TV
Our last recommendation for watching the Bundesliga online is Sling TV. It has three packages available: Sling Orange, Sling Blue or you can opt for the two together. To get the Fox Sports channels, you will need the Sling Blue package. The Sling Blue and Orange packages each cost $25 per month, but you can get the first month for just $15.
If you want more sports channels, such as ESPN, then you will need to sign up for the Orange-and-Blue combo package. Sling TV offers a discount for the first month, making it $25 per month, but after that, it’s $40 per month. You can watch it on mobile and streaming devices, SmartTVs and Xbox.
Just like the other options, Sling TV is only available in the U.S., so if you want to watch it from outside of the country, you will need to be connected to a U.S. server. The easiest way to do that is by using a VPN, which will change your location and protect you along the way.
There are many decent providers, but to save you some time, we recommend using ExpressVPN. It’s the best VPN on the market and a great all-rounder.
ExpressVPN will get you a U.S. IP address, no problem, and can get into any streaming service, which is why it’s our best VPN for streaming. There are many other features, too, as you can read in our ExpressVPN review.
Final Thoughts
The German Bundesliga is one of the best soccer leagues in the world, with world-class players from all over the globe. Will Borussia Dortmund be able to go one step further this year and beat Bayern Munich to win the league, or will another team — like Hertha Berlin or Bayer Leverkusen — crash the party? We’ll have to wait and see, but thankfully, there are a few ways you can follow it online and stay up to date.
Whichever streaming service you decide to use, just make sure that it includes Fox Sports in the package. If you literally just want to watch the Bundesliga and nothing else, then go for the Sling Blue package, as it is the cheapest option we’ve found.
Remember, if you’re outside of the U.S., you will need to use a VPN to spoof your location. You can read our geoblocking guide to help you get past those regional lockouts. However, ExpressVPN is the best VPN for getting around restrictions, and you can try it out with its 30-day money-back guarantee.
If there is something we have missed, or you know of an easier way to watch the Bundesliga online, let us know in the comment section. Take a look at our other entertainment articles, too. As always, thanks for reading.