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FIBA basketball offers another chance for national teams to bring home prestigious trophies and bragging rights between the Olympics. Running through September 10, the 2023 FIBA World Cup plays out across three countries in the Asia-Pacific region for the first time. To ensure you catch all the action, we'll show you how to watch FIBA World Cup live streams for free, plus premium options that'll get you an all-access ticket to see every game.
Sunday's final sees Germany take on Serbia, and it will be showing for free on the New Zealand channel (via a VPN if you're not in New Zealand), Duke on TVNZ. See below for instructions on how to watch for free from anywhere. We also have various international paid options.
- See also: Free US Open live stream
The 2023 FIBA tournament is the most accessible in history. You have premium and free FIBA live streams to tap into in nearly every country. To access free live streams (links below) from outside those countries, you must use a VPN (virtual private network) to bypass geo-restrictions. These handy apps let your devices mimic various international locations of your choosing so you can watch the World Cup online for free. We'll show you how further down this page if you don't have one already, along with extra details about various streaming options around the globe.
Where to watch FIBA World Cup basketball live streams free from anywhere
You can catch some of the FIBA World Cup action using free live streams in countries such as New Zealand (TVNZ), Spain (RTVE), and France (France.tv). The latter two may only show games involving their respective national teams, but TVNZ's schedule has a little more variety and has become the best option as the tournament has progressed. Whichever route you decide to go, remember you'll require a VPN to access them if you don't live in those countries.
A VPN lets you trick apps and websites into thinking you're connecting from servers within nearly any region worldwide. Once turned on and connected, visit the website like normal; it should punch your ticket to any available live stream. You can also use VPNs to sign up for cheap streaming services such as ESPN+ or Sling TV, great alternatives that are still relatively affordable if the free streams don't broadcast the matches or teams you like.
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How to watch the FIBA World Cup with a VPN
- Sign up for a VPN if you don't have one.
- Install it on the device you're using to watch the game.
- Turn it on and set it to New Zealand.
- Go to: TVNZ.
- Sign in and watch the matches.
- When: August 25 - September 10
How to watch the FIBA World Cup in the USA
ESPN is set to stream all FIBA World Cup in the US across its various platforms. Six games are expected to air exclusively on ESPN2, namely those featuring Team USA, and most likely some games from late rounds and the final on September 10. ESPN+ is set to show all 86 other matchups, which requires a $10 monthly subscription.
If you're a cord-cutter and want to access ESPN2 temporarily, you could opt for a service such as Sling Orange or Fubo TV. Sling is usually $40 a month, but your first month is currently cut to $20, and you can cancel anytime. Fubo TV is much more expensive at $75 a month, but you can get a 7-day free trial before moving on to a rolling one-month deal.
Or, if you have a VPN, you can watch certain FIBA World Cup matches for free using the broadcasts as described above.
ESPN Plus is designed for sports, giving subscribers access to live MLB, NHL, NFL, soccer, golf, and UFC fights. You can pay $11 monthly or go for an annual deal, which saves you about $22 a year. There's also a bundle with Hulu and Disney Plus, which offers an even better discount.
For just the essentials without any extra fluff, Sling TV is the streaming service you're looking for. It's more customizable than other plans, with three options you can choose from, so you pay for only what you need. New members get their first month for $25 off.
Fubo is the streaming service for sports fans. Its huge library of channels includes regional and international sports leagues, setting it apart from the competition. You can also tack on additional programming to your plan, but it'll cost you extra.
How to watch the FIBA World Cup in Australia
You have quite a few options for watching FIBA World Cup games in Australia. ESPN is the official broadcast partner in the country and is set to offer all of the action across ESPN, ESPN2, and the ESPN app. Foxtel, Fetch TV, and Sky NZ subscribers can enter their credentials at ESPN Australia to tune in at no extra cost.
Try Kayo if you're not interested in cable subscriptions. Kayo carries ESPN and is set to show all the FIBA World Cup games live in Australia. It's easy to access and starts at just 25 Australian dollars monthly, but you can also tune into several games free by signing up for an account, including all of Australia's and USA's matches, plus semi-finals, third-place, and final matches.
You can watch Kayo on the web or with apps on several devices, including Android and Apple smartphones and tablets; Samsung, LG, and Hisense smart TVs; Android TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Chromecast; and PlayStation gaming consoles.
How to watch all FIBA World Cup games live in the UK, Greece, and more
One of the primary sources for FIBA action for those outside the USA is Courtside 1891. The NBA officially endorses this streaming service as the primary destination to watch all the FIBA World Cup games that'll air over the next few weeks. You can watch at the NBA's website or any device the NBA app is on, including Android and iOS, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon tablets, Chromecast, Roku, PlayStation, Xbox, and select Hisense TVs.
You'll require a Max subscription to access the FIBA World Cup Pass (about $42 monthly), available only in 20 countries. Those include Angola, Argentina, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Greece, Indonesia, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland, Puerto Rico, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
Viewers in France, Germany, and Taiwan can expect to run into local blackouts for some games, so you'll need a VPN to access those.
How to watch the FIBA World Cup in Canada
SportsNet is the only destination to watch the FIBA World Cup in Canada, and you'll only be able to watch the national team's games live. This channel comes standard as part of most cable packages, and you can tune in directly on your set-top box or via the web and mobile apps by signing in with your provider's credentials.
You can also separately subscribe to SN Now, the stand-alone streaming component. Packages with FIBA content start at 20 Canadian dollars monthly.
How to watch the FIBA World Cup free in New Zealand
TVNZ started out by showing all the New Zealand Tall Blacks games for free, plus a few other hot matchups. And now, even with New Zealand eliminated, it seems like the channel is still covering as many games as possible (all the quarter-finals are showing), making it the best option internationally to live stream the FIBA World Cup for free. If you're not in NZ, you can connect to a server within the country using a VPN. You may need to sign up with a local postal code.
How to watch the FIBA World Cup in Spain
RTVE is a free live TV streaming service that showed all the games the Spanish national team played in. Since they were eliminated, coverage of the remaining games seems to have dried up, and we're not even seeing the final listed on the channel's schedule.
How to watch the FIBA World Cup in France
Viewers in France could watch all games featuring the French national team for free through the local streaming service France TV. However, France has now been knocked out, and it seems the channel has lost interest in the remaining games, as we're not seeing any in the TV guide for the channel at the time of writing.
FIBA World Cup schedule
Below is a full schedule of FIBA World Cup games that will run through the September 10 final. All times below are in US Eastern.
Semi-finals
- Serbia vs. Canada, Friday, 4:45 a.m. ET (free on TVNZ)
- USA vs. Germany, Friday, 8:40 a.m. ET (free on TVNZ)
Third-place playoff
- TBC vs. TBC, Sunday, 4:45 a.m. ET
Finals
- TBC vs. TBC, Sunday, 8:40 a.m. ET (free on TVNZ)
Note: The use of VPNs is illegal in certain countries, and using VPNs to access region-locked streaming content might constitute a breach of the terms of use for certain services. Insider does not endorse or condone the illegal use of VPNs.
Editorial Fellow
Quentyn Kennemer was a former Editorial Fellow for Insider Reviews. A career tech journalist, reporter, and devout tech-head whose entire life story surrounds the matter, he also loves escaping to fascinating new worlds through video games. In addition to Insider, Quentyn has written and edited for top publications like Forbes, Consumer Reports, Digital Trends, and more.
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