For the first time since the modern rebrand of the Champions League 34 years ago, the final will not be available to watch for free in the United Kingdom. Arsenal are set to face Paris Saint-Germain in Budapest, and TNT Sports, the rights holder, has decided to charge fans to view all three European finals, despite the possibility of English clubs securing a clean sweep of titles.
Uefa Unhappy with Decision
According to sources, Uefa is understood to be displeased with TNT Sports' choice. The contract includes a clause stating that "best endeavours" should be made to ensure the finals are accessible free of charge, and this decision is seen as breaking that spirit. TNT Sports is owned by Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) and has not made the finals available for free, unlike previous seasons when BT Sport, its predecessor, streamed the Champions League and Europa League finals live at no cost.
Upcoming European Finals
Aston Villa will be the Premier League's first challengers when they face Freiburg in the Europa League final on Wednesday. Crystal Palace will meet Rayo Vallecano in the Conference League final seven days later, followed by Arsenal taking on PSG the subsequent Saturday. TNT Sports holds the UK live rights for all three competitions, but access is now restricted to customers and subscribers of its streaming platform, HBO Max.
New sign-ups over the next few days can watch the finals, with the cheapest HBO Max subscription available for £4.99. However, TNT Sports itself costs £31.99 per month on most platforms. Before BT Sport acquired the rights, Champions League finals were broadcast live on ITV, which had exclusive rights from the competition's launch in 1992 until 2003, and then joint rights with Sky Sports until 2015.
Future Rights Changes
BT Sport/TNT Sport added the Conference League to its rights five years ago, but will lose all three competitions from the 2027-28 season. This follows Uefa's media rights auction last year, where Paramount outbid for the Champions League, and Sky Sports secured the other two tournaments. Previously, BT streamed its European finals on YouTube, and TNT Sports made them available for free to customers who registered with its sister streaming service discovery+ since taking over the contract two years ago. However, since WBD launched HBO Max in the UK in March, TNT Sports is no longer available on discovery+.
