Watch Out-of-Market NFL Games Online with a VPN (2024)

At a Glance

While there are several networks and streaming services that you can watch National Football League (NFL) games on, in most cases there are games that are not available for viewing. Whether it’s due to scheduling conflicts, local blackouts, or because of out-of-market viewing restrictions, you are missing important games during the football season.

Luckily, there is a way to get around these NFL and network blockades. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) can open access to out-of-market games, even if you’re in another country.

How Can a VPN Help Me Watch NFL Games Online?

AVPNhas the power to temporarily assign a fresh IP address to your connected device. Since IP addresses are assigned on a country-by-country basis, an IP can be used to determine your current geographical location. Streaming services use your IP address to assess whether or not you should be allowed to view geo-controlled content, like NFL games.

A VPN’s ability to temporarily assign a fresh IP address to your device can make it look as if you’re located in another city or country. If you select the correct area of the world, it opens up access to the content that is normally restricted to that area. So, if you’re outside of the United States you can select a server located in the U.S., opening up access to U.S. content (NFL football streams).

If your provider lists its servers on a city-by-city basis, you can connect to a VPN server located in another city to open up access to NFL streams for that city. (For example, if you’re in Colorado, you might not normally have access to Chicago Bears games. If your provider has a server in Chicago, you can connect to it and gain access to the Bears game.)

A VPN also offers protection from being tracked online. A VPN encases your internet connection in a tunnel of encryption, which blocks anyone (like your ISP, hackers, or other nosy types) from monitoring and tracking you online. Many VPNs also offer additional online safeguards, like blocking trackers, malware, malicious websites, and pesky ads.

How To Watch NFL Games Online

In a hurry to watch your favorite team’s kickoff and don’t have time to read this entire article? Here’s a quick explanation of how you can watch out-of-market NFL games online with the help of a VPN.

Here’s how to watch out-of-market NFL games by using a VPN:

1. Subscribe to a quality VPN. I recommendNordVPN. However, ExpressVPN, while more expensive, provides comprehensive access to geo-controlled content. Surfshark is also a first-round draft pick, thanks to its budget-friendly pricing.
2. Download and install the VPN appon the device on which you plan to stream the NFL games. All three of the VPNs mentioned above allow you to connect multiple devices at once.
3. Log in to the VPN app andconnect to a server in a country outside the US and Canada. For example, a server in the UK to get a UK IP address.
4. Sign up with NFL Game Pass Internationalif you haven’t already. You’ll need to select the “Pro” plan in order to watch all games live.
5. You should now be able to watch out-of-market NFL gamesregardless of your location. Stream blocked?Clear your browser’s cookies. Be sure to try more than one server.

What Are Out-of-Market NFL Games?

Out-of-market NFL games are game broadcasts that are only available outside of the broadcast region you’re in. This means that often you cannot stream your local team’s games live because your local broadcaster (Fox, CBS, NBC, or ABC) has exclusive rights, meaning the game is only available over-the-air or via cable.

When you call a game out-of-market, you’re simply saying it’s geographically restricted. This is common in thestreamingindustry. Contracts for content (NFL games included) are usually geographically limited, meaning the content can only be enjoyed in designated areas of the globe. This forces the NFL to blackout the streams of local games.

Luckily, there is a way to enjoy the games of any NFL team. It’s called a VPN.

How To Watch Out-of-Market NFL Games?

NFL Sunday Ticket

One of the easiest ways to watch out-of-market NFL games is unfortunately limited to football fans in the United States. NFL Sunday Ticket offers all of the afternoon CBS and Fox games, except those being broadcast in your local area. This is an ideal way for fans to enjoy their favorite team’s games if they live outside of that team’s market.

NFL Sunday Ticket is available exclusively through YouTube. NFL Sunday Ticket currently costs $349 USD or $389 USD if you also opt to include NFL Redzone. If you already subscribe to YouTube TV you’ll get a discount, paying only $249 per year or $289 if you include Redzone. Keep in mind, that discount is only available if you’re already paying $72.99 per month forYouTube TV.

As I mentioned above, NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube is only available in the United States, so a VPN that can provide an IP address in the U.S. is required to watch from overseas.

NFL Game Pass International

NFL Game Pass International is arguably the most convenient and affordable way to view every NFL game. While the service has been renamed to NFL+ in the United States, it’s still NFL Game Pass International outside U.S. borders.

Pricing varies according to the country you reside in and could change before the start of the 2024 season.

NFL Game Pass International is available in multiple countries around the globe, but not in the U.S. This means you’ll need to connect to a VPN server based outside of the United States. Instead, you must connect to a server located in a country where NFL Game Pass International is available. This will change your IP address, making it appear as if you are connecting from another country, enabling access to the service.

NFL+ Premium

While NFL+ Premium allows football fans to watch every game, it only allows you to watch the games after they aired live. You can also use the service to view local and primetime regular season games on your mobile device. You can listen to audio live streams of every game, while also gaining access to NFL Network shows.

The price for all of this somewhat restricted NFL goodness is $9.99 a month, which is a definite discount from NFL Sunday Ticket, although it lacks the video live streams. If you aren’t interested in full replays of games, you can opt for the $4.99 per month plan.

NFL+ is available only in the United States, so you’ll need to use a VPN to access it from outside of the U.S.

NFL Redzone

NFL RedZone does not feature full games. Instead, the service provides “every touchdown from every game”. The service monitors all of the day’s NFL games, providing live look-ins to games where a team has entered the “red zone” (within 20 yards of the opposing team’s end zone) to cover the potential scoring event (touchdown or field goal) or turnover. If no team is currently in the red zone, the service may show other offensive or defensive highlights.

NFL Redzone is particularly popular among fantasy football players and gamblers, as the service also tracks and updates viewers with fantasy football statistics that are tracked in leagues and that can be bet upon through legal sportsbooks.

If you have a cable subscription, check to see if it includes NFL Redzone, in which case, you can watch for no extra cost. If you don’t already have access to it, you can get Redzone through these streaming services:

• Fubo TV:$74.99/month + $10.99/month for the Sports Plus with NFL RedZone add-on.
• Hulu with Live TV:$69.99/month with ads (also includes Disney+ with ads and ESPN+ with ads) + $9.99 Sports Add-on.
• Sling TV:$45/month (Sling Blue) + $11/month Sports Extra.
• YouTube TV:A discounted $64.99/month for the first three months ($72.99/month thereafter) + $10.99/month Sports Plus.

All of the above services are available only in the U.S., meaning you’ll need to use a VPN’s U.S. server to gain access to it if you’re outside of the U.S. for work or play.

Best VPN For Watching Out-of-Market NFL Games: NordVPN

NordVPN is my #1 pick for a VPN to watch out-of-market NFL games, thanks to its fast connections, reliable unblocking of geo-controlled content, excellent native app support, and comprehensive onlinesecurity and privacyprotection.

NordVPN’s global server coverage includes more than 6,000 servers stationed in 60+ countries. That global coverage provides the power to access plenty of global content, including NFL games, as well asNetflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, and several other streaming services.

The provider’s owned-and-operated server model keeps third parties away from your personal data. The provider also runs all of its servers 100% from RAM, so there is no data ever written to a permanent storage device, ensuring that all data is wiped when a server is rebooted or shut down.

NordVPN provides banking-grade encryption for its customers’ connections and follows a strictno-logs policy. A Bitcoin payment option rounds out the privacy protections.

NordVPN’s fast connections are easily up to handling HD and 4K content. The provider never spoils the fun with bandwidth limitations or data caps.

Support options include 24/7 chat, email support, and a searchable support library.

The provider offers native apps for most popular devices, including Windows,macOS(with Apple Silicon support), iOS, Android, Amazon Fire, Linux, Apple TV, and Android TV devices. Users can install the VPN on select routers.Pre-configured routers are also available.

NordVPN’s Smart Play DNS service is also available. The service provides access to blocked content, but doesn’t include the encrypted protection of the service’s VPN offering.

Out-of-Market NFL Games FAQs

Will a VPN Slow Down My Connection When Streaming NFL Games?

A VPN will slow your connection somewhat and this can affect your streaming performance. This is because a VPN encrypts your internet connection, while also rerouting it through a VPN server before it reaches its ultimate destination, the streaming site or service.

The good news is that a quality VPN service will not slow your connection so much as to affect your streaming. I run VPN connection speeds on a regular basis, and I have identified thefastest VPNs(like NordVPN). This means that as long as your regular internet connection speeds are up to streaming, your VPN connection will also be able to handle the streams.

Why Can’t I Use a Free VPN to Watch Out-of-Market NFL Games?

A free VPN is not a good solution for watching out-of-market NFL games for several reasons. Perhaps the most important strike against a free VPN is their tendency tothrottle their users’ connection speeds, while also imposing daily or monthly data caps on their VPN usage. This is not conducive to an enjoyable streaming experience, as you may be shut off from your VPN connection in mid-game.

Plus, free VPN servers are not exactly known for reliably unblocking geo-controlled streaming content like NFL games. This means you’ll miss out on a lot of NFL action if you try to use a free VPN.

Free VPNsare also less than private, as many freebie VPN providers log their users’ online activities, collecting them to sell to advertisers and any other nosy types that are willing to pay for the info. Some free VPNs have even been caught injecting unwanted tracking cookies and ads into their users’ browsing sessions. Guess what? Those cookies keep right on tracking you, even when you’re not connected to the VPN provider’s servers.

Is It Legal to Use a VPN to Watch Out-of-Market NFL Games?

As long as VPN use is legal in your country, it is completely legal to use a VPN to watch out-of-market NFL games. However, you should be aware that VPN usage likely violates the terms and conditions of the streaming platform you’re using.

This means that streaming services can reserve the right to suspend or close your account if they discover you are using a VPN to view their content. That said, it’s unlikely to occur. Instead, you may simply find that the service has blacklisted your VPN IP address. Of course, you can get around the IP address blockade by disconnecting and then reconnecting to another server tochange your IP address.

In Closing

We’ve found that viewing out-of-market NFL games can be done, although it requires a bit of extra effort and expense. By subscribing to the right streaming service and the right VPN, you can enjoy all of your favorite team’s games all season long, no matter where you’re located.

A quality VPN, like NordVPN, provides reliable access to out-of-market NFL games for your connected streaming device, while providing comprehensive online security and privacy. For more information, read my fullNordVPN review.