The Champions League final between Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain will not be available to watch for free in the UK for the first time in the modern era.
Ever since the European Cup was rebranded to the Champions League 34 years ago, the final has been available to watch without a subscription to any premium TV service – shown on ITV from 1992 to 2015 and then streamed for free by TNT Sports and its forerunner, BT Sport, for the past decade.
However, UK rights holder TNT Sports (owned by Warner Bros Discovery) has confirmed that this year, viewers will only be able to watch the clash at the Puskas Arena in Budapest on Saturday 30 May on either its own platform or HBO Max, both requiring a subscription.
The same will apply to the other two European finals, also involving English clubs – Aston Villa vs Freiburg in the Europa League final on Wednesday and Crystal Palace’s Conference League final against Rayo Vallecano a week later.
TNT Sports can be accessed through HBO Max, BT, Sky, Virgin Media or Amazon PVC, with subscriptions typically costing between £25 and £34 a month, while a separate HBO Max plan in the UK starts from £4.99.
Arsenal have reached the Champions League final for just the second time in their history, and the first since 2006, with reigning champions PSG standing in the way of Mikel Arteta’s men, who will try to seal a remarkable double as they also aim to outduel Manchester City for a first Premier League title for 22 years.
Arsenal have reached the Champions League final for just the second time (Getty)
According to a report in The Guardian, governing body Uefa is irritated at TNT Sports’ decision to charge fans to watch all three European finals, despite having made the showpieces available to stream for free in previous seasons. The Guardian’s sources at Uefa say the decision breaks the spirit of a contract that states “best endeavours” should be made to ensure the finals are available for free.
TNT Sports are set to lose TV rights to all three European competitions from the 2027-28 season, having been outbid by Paramount for the Champions League and by Sky Sports for the Europa League and Conference League in Uefa’s media rights auction last year.
