Coventry City will be hoping to make home advantage count and take a step closer to the English Premier League as they host Sunderland today in the first leg of their Championship playoff semifinal.
Below, we’ll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to watch the game as it happens, wherever you are in the world, and how to use a VPN if the match isn’t available where you are.
The host team appears to have hit form at the right time under manager Frank Lampard, coming into the playoffs having won seven of its last eight home games.
Sunderland, meanwhile, has lost five of its last six matches, with Regis Le Bris’s men ending the regular season with an uninspiring 1-0 defeat at home to QPR.
Coventry City takes on Sunderland on Friday, May 9, at the Coventry Building Society Arena, with kickoff set for 8 p.m. BST local time. That makes it a 3 p.m. ET or 12 p.m. PT start in the US and Canada, and a 5 a.m. AEST kickoff in Australia early on Sunday morning.
How to watch Coventry vs. Sunderland in the US without cable
American soccer fans can stream this crucial fixture via Paramount Plus, which has exclusive live English-language broadcast rights in the US for the Championship playoffs.
How to watch the Championship playoffs season from anywhere with a VPN
If you’re traveling abroad and want to keep up with all the Championship action while away from home, a VPN can help enhance your privacy and security when streaming.
It encrypts your traffic and prevents your internet service provider from throttling your speeds, and can also be helpful when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks while traveling, adding an extra layer of protection for your devices and logins. VPNs are legal in many countries, including the US and Canada, and can be used for legitimate purposes such as improving online privacy and security.
However, some streaming services may have policies restricting VPN usage to access region-specific content. If you’re considering a VPN for streaming, check the platform’s terms of service to ensure compliance.
If you choose to use a VPN, follow the provider’s installation instructions, ensuring you’re connected securely and in compliance with applicable laws and service agreements. Some streaming platforms may block access when a VPN is detected, so verifying if your streaming subscription allows VPN usage is crucial.
Livestream Coventry vs. Sunderland in the UK
Today’s semifinal first leg is exclusive to Sky Sports, showing on its Sky Sports Main Event, Premier League and UHD channels. If you already have Sky Sports as part of your TV package, you can stream the game via its Sky Go app, but cord-cutters will want to get set up with a Now account and a Now Sports membership to stream the game.
Livestream Coventry vs. Sunderland in Canada
If you want to stream the Championship playoffs live in Canada, you’ll need to subscribe to DAZN Canada. The service has exclusive broadcast rights to the English Football League this season.
Livestream Coventry vs. Sunderland in Australia
Footy fans down under can watch the Championship playoffs on BeIn Sports, which holds the live broadcast rights in Australia for EFL. This match is set to be shown on BeIn Sports 3 and BeIn Sports Connect.
Quick tips for streaming the playoffs using a VPN
- With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming EPL matches may vary.
- If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the «search for city or country» option.
- If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
- All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help, since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
- And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.