Optus Sport has announced it will make its live coverage of the UEFA Euro 2020 semi-finals and final matches free to watch for all Australians.
The two semi-finals (5am on Wednesday 7 July and Thursday 8 July) and final (5am on Monday 12 July) will see England, Italy, Denmark and Spain fighting it out for glory, off the back of what has been an incredible UEFA Euro 2020 tournament to date.
The games will be the final matches the platform has after losing the UEFA right to Stan Sport. Stan has entered into a major multi-year partnership agreement with the Union of European Football Associations. The deal secures exclusive broadcast rights to every match of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League and UEFA Youth League, alongside rights to the UEFA Super Cup, for the next three seasons.
Stan Sport’s exclusive UEFA coverage will begin with the 2021-22 UEFA Super Cup match between 2020-21 UEFA Champions League winners Chelsea and Villarreal, winners of the 2020-21 UEFA Europa League – kicking off on Thursday, 12 August (AEST), with Stan Sport’s live broadcast time to be announced.
“We have had our greatest ever month on Optus Sport with the best of the best competing in the UEFA Euro 2020 and Copa America 2021 tournaments and we still have the biggest matches of the tournament to go,” Head of TV and Content Corin Dimopoulos said.
“With the likes of Harry Kane and Lorenzo Insigne to be in action across the Euro finals, all Australians can now watch these three live matches on Optus Sport for free without a subscription.
“We recognise that a lot of the country is currently restricted when it comes to going round to friends’ houses or to a venue to watch games together, and we are therefore pleased to provide as many Australians as we can with the opportunity to enjoy the last three tournament games in the comfort of every home.”
Optus Sport Expert John Aloisi, a Socceroos legend who has played professionally in England, Spain and Italy, said that the tournament has so far more than lived up to the hype.
“UEFA Euro 2020 might have been postponed by twelve months due to the pandemic, but it has certainly been worth waiting for,” Aloisi said.
“The Round of 16 was about as captivating as an international tournament has been in my lifetime, with plenty of shock results, late equalisers and winners, and even the customary penalty shootout we’ve come to expect.
“The quarter-finals picked up right where the Round of 16 left off, and these are some of the most eagerly anticipated semi-finals we’ve ever seen, so it’s great to know that all Australians will have access to watch them both, as well as the final, live and free, exclusive to Optus Sport.”
Viewers are offered the most extensive Euro coverage seen by Australian audiences, with over 90 minutes of post-match reaction, analysis and fan involvement live on every matchday, culminating with the Euro Brekky Wrap show from Optus Sport’s London studio.
The UEFA Euro 2020TM schedule (AEST) on Optus Sport is as follows:
Semi-finals
Wednesday July 7 – Italy vs Spain: 5am, coverage starts at 4.30am with host Niav Owens joined by John Aloisi, Michael Bridges and Thomas Sorensen. Mark Schwarzer and Alicia Ferguson will be pitchside at Wembley.
Thursday July 8 – England vs Denmark: 5am, coverage starts at 4.30am with host Richard Bayliss joined by John Aloisi, Michael Bridges and Thomas Sorensen. Mark Schwarzer and Alicia Ferguson will be pitchside at Wembley.
Final
Monday July 12 – 5am, coverage starts at 4am with host Richard Bayliss joined by John Aloisi, Michael Bridges and Thomas Sorensen. Mark Schwarzer and Alicia Ferguson will be pitchside at Wembley.
Access to watch both semi-finals and the final live on Optus Sport is available across mobile and tablet devices, web browsers, Fetch, Apple TV, Chromecast and select Smart TVs and media streaming devices. An Optus Sport account is not required to watch these select live matches.
Looking ahead on Optus Sport, there are over 700 matches planned for the next 12 months including world-class coverage of the Premier League, UEFA Nations League, European national team football, Barclays FA Women’s Super League and J.League.
The UEFA Women’s Euros 2022 will also be kicking off on July 6 in 2022, and Optus Sport has successfully secured the media rights for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 to be hosted in Australia and New Zealand, in July and August 2023.
Optus Sport customers also gain access to OS Fitness as part of their subscription, which has a wide variety of more than 500 workouts that are tailored for everyday Australians, from strength and cardio to yoga and dance.
How To Access
Australians can access the free to watch live stream by downloading the Optus Sport app on a compatible device or going to https://sport.optus.com.au on a compatible web browser. Inside the Optus Sport app, live matches that are free to watch without a subscription will be marked with a green ‘Free’ tag on the match tile (which appears to users without a premium subscription).
On some platforms such as the Optus Sport Connected TV apps, viewers may be prompted to log in with an Optus Sport account. Viewers should create a free account via sport.optus.com.au/register – they will not need to purchase a subscription.
On Fetch, viewers can access the live stream of those matches via ‘Optus Sport Free’ channel 154 in their EPG.
How To Get Optus Sport In Australia
Optus customers can get Optus Sport at no extra cost as part of almost every Optus mobile, home internet, 5G home and data SIM plan. For customers without a plan, they can subscribe for $14.99 per month, or for a limited time, get our new 3-month plan for $29.99 or an Annual Pass for $99 for 12 months.
Watch Optus Sport on your favourite screens and devices via Fetch, Apple TV, Android TV compatible Smart TVs, LG Smart TVs, Apple Airplay, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox, compatible Samsung Smart TVs or desktop, or on-the-go via tablet, mobile, or laptop.