If you’re a cord-cutter looking for all the ways you can watch boxing without cable, you’re in the right place. When it comes to boxing, it’s important to find a streaming service that suits both your pay-per-view (PPV) and overall viewing needs. In this guide, we’ll break it all down.
In a hurry? Check out these 4 streaming services that are great for watching boxing matches without cable:
DAZN: The ultimate choice for boxing fans. Broadcasts many other MMA sports, and you won’t have to pay for PPV fights.
ESPN+: Home of the UFC, offers tons of free MMA fights and boxing matches and the option to pay for PPV events.
Sling TV: Best option if you’re looking for a cable replacement. One of the only streaming services that allows you to purchase PPV boxing matches, and offers the option to add-on Showtime, which is home to some of the most anticipated boxing matches of the year.
FITE TV: Affordable and combat-sport focused, you’ll get access to over 1,000 live events per year.
Outside the US? Try a VPN. Here are our top VPN picks.
Our pick for watching boxing without cable: DAZN
If you’re looking for all things boxing, then DAZN was made for you. DAZN launched in 2018, and currently remains the one of the only streaming services in the US that focuses primarily on fighting sports. If you find yourself sick of paying for costly PPV fights all year long, DAZN is your cost-saving solution.
Why DAZN?
If you’re a cord-cutter looking for an alternative to pay-per-view events, you’ll have a hard time finding a cheaper, better option than DAZN.
DAZN created an app to allow subscribers to tune into exclusive events, watch fights, and original content all from their smartphones. The app and their website are also extremely easy to navigate.
Of course, if you’re looking for a streaming service that’ll give you access to more than just boxing matches and MMA fights, you’re better off going for an alternative like ESPN+ or Sling TV. DAZN has spent years trying to secure the rights to other mainstream sports in the US, but has yet to succeed. That said, there is some limited other sports content available, such as MLB highlights, soccer, gymnastics, cricket, snooker, and pool.
Top 3 features
Here are the 3 biggest reasons boxing fans will love DAZN:
Great user experience. DAZN has made tuning into your favorite boxing matches as easy and comfortable as possible. Its app is extremely intuitive and pleasant to use. Streaming quality is HD for an ultimate viewing experience. On top of that, it lets you enable push notifications to remind you of upcoming events you don’t want to miss.
Tons of live and on-demand boxing content. Do you want all things combat sports? Then you need DAZN. Every live event broadcast on DAZN later becomes available in its on-demand library. So if you miss it the first time around, don’t sweat. You can also watch a ton of classic fights, exclusive interviews, and boxing-themed documentaries.
Fantastic 24/7 customer support. DAZN has great customer support that responds extremely fast through its live online chat system. You can also email them or tweet them directly at @DAZNBoxing_Help and they usually get back to you within 24 hours.
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Read our in-depth review of DAZN.
When is live boxing season?
Boxing season goes on year-round. Every week, you’ll find matches to watch airing from almost any part of the world.
Other options for watching boxing without cable
ESPN+
ESPN+ is a must-have for sports fans, and boxing fans are no exception. You’ll find tons of free and PPV boxing matches, behind-the-scenes boxing content, and more. You’ll still have to pay for PPV events, but if you’ve cut the cord and are looking for a cheap way to watch sports year-round, ESPN+ is a great choice. It’s also the home of the UFC, so if you’re also into MMA, look no further.
When it comes to features, ESPN+ doesn’t come with DVR. However, this shouldn’t matter too much, since you’ll find tons of sports matches, documentaries, interviews, and sports shows in its on-demand library. You can watch on up to 3 devices at a time on iOS, Android, Chromecast, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, web browsers, and more.
Unfortunately, ESPN+ doesn’t currently offer a free trial, but at such an affordable monthly price tag, it won’t set you back by much to try it out for a month and cancel if it’s really not for you.
Read our in-depth review of ESPN+.
Sling TV
If you’re looking for a streaming service that will satisfy your boxing needs and serve as a cable TV replacement—without breaking the bank—we’d recommend checking out Sling TV.
Sling Orange will get you 30+ channels, including ESPN and ESPN2. Sling Blue offers 40+ channels, including Fox and Fox Sports 1. You can also combine both plans and get Sling Orange + Blue to get a wider range of channels that air boxing matches.
The most important feature that Sling offers for boxing fans is the ability to buy PPV events directly through the streaming service, which isn’t an option with most other platforms. On top of that, you have the option to add Showtime as an add-on to your subscription package, which airs some of the hottest matches of the year.
When it comes to simultaneous streams, you’ll be limited to 1 screen at a time with Sling Orange, and 3 screens at a time with Sling Blue. If you get the combined package, you’ll still only be able to stream Sling Orange channels on one device at a time, and Sling Blue channels on 3 devices at a time. So if you’re looking to share your account with another ESPN fan, this could be an issue.
Otherwise, Sling TV is a great option for boxing fans. Every plan includes a free 50-hour DVR, which other options on this list do not offer. It has apps for iOS and Android, and you can watch on web browsers, Roku, Chromecast, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire devices, among many others.
Read our in-depth review of Sling TV.
FITE TV
We can’t talk about boxing without quickly mentioning FITE TV. Having launched in 2012, FITE TV has remained largely centered around combat sports, including boxing, professional wrestling and MMA, with a little bit of rugby and soccer here and there. Although it doesn’t offer as many fights as the other options on this list, you’ll still get access to over 1,000 live events per year. It’s reasonably affordable, and you can purchase some PPV boxing matches directly through the platform.
When it comes to simultaneous streams, FITE TV only allows you to watch on 1 device at a time. On the bright side, if you miss a match, you can immediately watch a replay as soon as the match is over thanks to its DVR capabilities, or record matches and watch them later. You can enjoy FITE TV on iOS and Android, Apple TV, web browsers, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, and plenty more devices.
FITE TV also offers a free 7-day trial, so you can test it out and see if you like it. As long as you cancel before the week is up, you won’t be charged anything.
What channels air live boxing matches?
It’s easy to get confused when you’re looking to watch boxing, because matches air on so many different channels and platforms. However, there are a small handful of networks that broadcast the biggest and most popular boxing matches you’ll likely be looking for.
DAZN is the ultimate streaming service for boxing fans, and they own the exclusive rights to many events. Presently, DAZN has the rights to matches from many fighters, including (but not limited to) Canelo Alvarez, GGG, Michael Venom Page, Daniel Jacobs, and Rory Macdonald. To check out DAZN’s live schedule for boxing matches, click here.
You can find Top Rank boxing events on ESPN+, and a ton of other boxing matches sometimes airing on ESPN channels. To see ESPN+’s full boxing schedule, click here.
Showtime is home to many of the most anticipated boxing events of the year, including the highly popular Showtime Championship Boxing. To see Showtime’s schedule for upcoming boxing events, click here.
You’ll find a handful of exclusive fights on FITE TV throughout the year. Click here to check out FITE TV’s live schedule.
When it comes to Fox, you’ll be able to watch Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) mainly on Fox Sports 1.
Best devices for watching boxing without cable
Some people think that cutting the cord means that you’ll now have to start watching boxing hunched over your laptop. But this isn’t true!
All the ways to watch boxing that we mentioned above—DAZN, ESPN+, Sling TV, FITE TV—are compatible with most Smart TVs, web browsers, Roku, Chromecast, Apple TV, Amazon Fire devices, and have apps for iOS and Android. You should always check the streaming service first to ensure it’s compatible with the devices you own, but for the most part, you shouldn’t have trouble watching boxing on most devices.
How to bet on boxing
Boxing bettors have been around almost as long as the sport has existed. The ability to bet online has only made betting on boxing a more popular and mainstream activity today than ever before.
DAZN dropped hints in 2022 about moving forward “with recreational betting, gaming, e-commerce, NFTs and tech advances in the viewing experience.” However, as of yet, you can’t bet on boxing directly through any of the streaming services we’ve mentioned in this article.
To bet on boxing, what you need to do is:
Pick a Sportsbook and sign up. Currently, the only way to place a bet for boxing is through a Sportsbook. Some popular options include BetOnline, BetMGM, and FanDuel.
Deposit some money into your account. The great—but often risky—thing about Sportsbooks is they take many different forms of payment. From most credit cards, to debit, to even cryptocurrencies.
Place some bets. Once you’ve deposited money into your Sportsbook account, you’re ready to place some bets.
Before betting, make sure you read up on where sports betting is legal to ensure you can bet where you live.
How to watch boxing outside of the United States
Boxing is a worldwide sport, so you’ll find top matches taking place in London, Mexico City, Japan, and Cuba. However, boxing remains most popular in the US, with most competitions taking place within the country, and most international matches made available to people living within the US.
However, if you find yourself outside of the US and wanting to tune into a US-only boxing match, you can do so using a VPN.
All you need to do is:
Sign up for a VPN service. Check out our list of top VPNs if you need help choosing one!
Download the app and connect to a US-based server.
Sign into the streaming service you’re subscribed to.
Pay for the PPV event (if needed).
Enjoy!
Our takeaway: there are many great ways to watch boxing
Overall, there are plenty of great ways for cord-cutters to enjoy the sport of boxing. DAZN is the best overall choice, since it offers plenty of boxing matches and PPV events year-round at no extra charge. If you’re looking for a cheaper option but still a ton of top boxing matches, we’d recommend FITE TV. For big sports fans, we’d suggest ESPN+. For the best cable replacement for boxing fans looking for a bit more variety, we recommend Sling TV.
Whether you decide to go for one of these options or stack a combination of two or more to get even more boxing content, you’ve got tons of different ways to customize your viewing experience to suit you.
Tara K
Tara Khudairi is a freelance content writer and copywriter based in Toronto. Since 2014, she has contributed to brands and blogs alike to tackle popular topics relating to technology, personal finance, entertainment, travel and lifestyle. Whether it’s the latest streaming service or cryptocurrency, she’s passionate about making the complex simple. When she’s not busy typing away, you’ll find Tara watching Netflix’s latest true crime doc or a classic 90’s horror flick.