How to Watch Badminton on TV or Online
In the UK and most of Europe, badminton is not a mainstream sport, meaning it can sometimes be difficult to know where to watch professional badminton matches, online or on TV, from the latest tournaments across the world.
This article will look to explore ways to watch badminton matches online or on TV, primarily for UK based audiences, however you may be abe to use some of these methods if you are based outside of the UK.
Watching Badminton on Youtube
Youtube is one of the most popular ways to watch professional badminton tournament matches and this popularity shows no sign of slowing down.
The largest badminton Youtube channel is BWF TV, the channel of the Badminton World Federation which governs the sport on an international level. BWF TV has, at the time of writing, over 2.8 million subscribers and over 1.5 billion views.
BWF TV offers a variety of viewing options, including live broadcasts, catch-up, and delayed streaming of major events on the HSBC BWF World Tour. This includes prestigious tournaments like the BWF Sudirman Cup Finals, BWF Thomas and Uber Cup Finals, and the BWF World Championships. In addition, viewers can access a wealth of exclusive content, including the most recent highlights and interviews.
It is important to note that live broadcasts do not feature for every match, with the highest profile matches being chosen for the TV court. The level of broadcasting also depends on the level of the tournament.
BWF Super 300 tournaments - Broadcasts from semi finals
BWF Super 500 tournaments - Broadcasts from second round
BWF Super 750 tournaments - Broadcasts from first round
BWF Super 1000 tournaments - Broadcasts from first round.
BWF broadcasts are however geo-blocked in countries where local broadcasters have won broadcast rights to particular tournaments. In this scenario the best way to over come these issues is to use a VPN.
How do I watch Badminton with a VPN?
VPNs are a fantastic tool to watch badminton content that has been restricted due to local broadcast rights. Firstly, what is a VPN? A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is a technology that creates a secure and encrypted connection over the internet.
Along with many benefits including security and privacy when browsing, VPNs also enable geo-spoofing, which allows you to appear as if you're browsing from a different location. For example, you can connect to a VPN server in the United States while physically located in Europe, which grants you access geo-restricted content like streaming services or websites that are limited to certain regions.
Steps to watch a Badminton match with a VPN
Download a VPN of your choice. There are various different VPN services available, some of which are free, however the free services will likely have certain restrictions.
Choose a foreign server with a country where the tournament rights have not been sold. This can wither be done through trial and error or by thoroughly checking BWF content for information on tournament broadcasters.
Once a suitable country server has been found then you are free to watch the badminton games being broadcast through the BWF TV Youtube channel.
Users should choose reputable VPN providers and be aware that the legality of VPN usage varies by country, so it's essential to understand the laws and regulations in your region before using one.
It is understandable that, for some people, downloading a VPN is outside of their technical comfort zone. It can also be difficult to find a free VPN service which grants the level of server access needed to circumvent the geo blocked badminton matches being streamed online. Next we will look at other methods of watching badminton from the UK.
Watching Badminton on TNT Sports
TNT Sports, the newly branded sports channel previously known as BT Sports, is the UK rights holder to a host of BWF World Tour badminton tournaments. TNT Sports is a paid monthly subscription service and provides coverage of many different sports including badminton. TNT sports coverage is usually of a high quality, with commentary, however there will be advert breaks squeezed into breaks in play.
Watching Badminton on BBC
The BBC is not a regular broadcaster of badminton, however for certain prestigious events badminton can usually be found on the BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website or BBC app. In previous years badminton events in the Olympic Games and Court 1 matches at the Yonex All England championships have been available through BBC sport streaming services.
Watching badminton on Badminton Europe TV
The easiest way to follow and watch badminton tournaments around Europe is through badmintoneurope.tv. This is the official TV channel of the Badminton Europe Confederation and events can be watched for free once a free account is registered.
Events with streaming include International Series, International Challenge and Future Series tournaments. The events which will include live streaming can be viewed in the streaming calendar.
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