Australia has a culture built around sport: playing, coaching, competing, and most of all, watching. Whether you’re keen to watch an AFL (Australian rules football) or NRL (rugby league) match, you’ll have no trouble enjoying sport in all its many forms in the land Down Under. Here’s our guide on where you can watch sport in Australia.
AFL
Australian rules football – also known as AFL – is the country’s unofficial national sport, and we highly recommend you catch a live game while you’re in Australia. AFL matches are played in every single state and territory across the country and buying tickets for a game during the season (which runs from March to September) is easy. Just jump on the AFL website, pick the game/date you want to attend in your city, and enjoy! Tickets for the 2020 Premiership Season will be available from 28 February.
If you’d rather watch from home, you can watch AFL matches on Channel Seven, or stream matches for a fee via the AFL Live app, Kayo Sports (one of Australia’s top online sports streaming sites) or on Foxtel Now.
Cricket
Meanwhile, cricket is Australia’s national sport. The Cricket Australia website is the perfect place to see where games are playing and buy tickets. Later in the year, the 2020 ICC Women’s and Men’s T20 World Cup tournaments will be touring across the country; you can find tickets to live matches here.
You’ll also find a comprehensive list of where to watch cricket matches from home on the Cricket Australia website. Some of these you’ll have to pay for (Foxtel/Kayo Sports), while others will let you watch live cricket for free online.
Tennis
Featuring some of tennis’ greatest stars like Novak Djokovic to Ajla Tomljanović to Ons Jabeur, the Australian Open (AO) is the country’s biggest international tennis tournament. It starts in January every year in Melbourne, taking place from 7-28 January in 2024. Tickets to matches can be bought from the AO website. Details on other pro tournaments across the country can be found here, with tickets available on their respective websites.
The AO can be streamed live on the 9Now app, while the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open are shown across various outlets. Your safest bet is to buy a subscription to Kayo Sports so you can catch all the matches in one place.
Formula One
Every year, the Australian Grand Prix puts spectators on the edge of their seat. World-renowned drivers race around the Melbourne track, the sounds of screeching tires echoing through the city streets.
This year, the Australian Grand Prix will take place from 21-24 March 2024. While ticket availability is limited (and quite expensive), you can still experience the excitement by watching the race on TV.
All live TV coverage of F1 races in Australia is broadcast through Foxtel and Foxtel Now. You can also watch via Kayo Sports. All of these services require a paid subscription. To watch for free, tune in to Channel 10, which will be broadcasting the race live.
Soccer/Football
Whether you’re on the hunt for Premier League matches or you want to check out the Women’s Super League, most soccer matches can be watched via ABC, or streamed online for free on ABC iView. For all other international soccer games, Kayo Sports are Optus Sports are great go-tos. You’ll need to pay for these services, but if you watch soccer frequently, it could be well worth it.
Basketball
Basketball’s popularity is growing steadily in Australia. To catch Australia’s local NBL games live in your city, check for tickets here.
If you’re a fan of the NBA, you can watch some games free on TV through SBS, or watch sports online for free on SBS OnDemand. For a consistent stream of basketball games from across the world, Kayo Sports is the best option.
UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) travels across the world for live bouts, but it doesn’t visit Australia regularly. You might get lucky, though; keep an eye on the UFC events page.
The UFC is also not shown free-to-air, so you’ll have to invest in Foxtel for Fight Nights. For numbered events, Foxtel will show preliminary bouts, but main card fights are pay-per-view. This means you pay each time you want to watch a fight. Your best option is to watch these at a bar or pub; venues will advertise when they are screening events. Search Game On! for the closest venue near you showing the UFC.
Want a crowd but can’t attend a match live?
If you want to cheer on your favourite team with a crowd but can’t make it to a live match, pubs and bars across Australia usually show sports live for everyone to enjoy. Use Game On! to find out which venues will be streaming sports (like soccer, rugby, horse racing, snooker, hockey…) and when.
