The NFL is back. Preseason football may not be the most meaningful action on the planet, but it offers fans an opportunity to see rookies in live-game action for the first time, as well as players battling for final roster spots and some early glimpses of upcoming breakout seasons.
Most preseason games will be televised on each team’s local affiliate network (ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, CW, MyTV, etc.), while many will also be nationally televised on NFL Network, and a couple will be nationally broadcast on Amazon Prime, CBS, Fox, ESPN or NBC. If you don’t have cable, or you live out of market of the team you want to watch, we’ve put together all the best ways to watch a live stream of NFL preseason games in 2024.
Upcoming NFL preseason 2024 schedule
- August 8: Panthers at Patriots, 7:00 p.m. ET, NFL Network, locals
- August 8: Lions at Giants, 7:00 p.m. ET, locals
- August 9: Texans at Steelers, 7:00 p.m. ET, NFL Network, locals
- August 9: Falcons at Dolphins, 7:00 p.m. ET, locals
- August 8: Eagles at Ravens, 7:30 p.m. ET, locals
- August 10: Commanders at Jets, 12:00 p.m. ET, locals
- August 10: Bears at Bills, 1:00 p.m. ET, NFL Network, locals
- August 10: Raiders at Vikings, 4:00 p.m. ET, NFL Network, locals
- August 10: Packers at Browns, 4:25 p.m. ET, locals
- August 10: Chiefs at Jaguars, 7:00 p.m. ET, NFL Network, locals
- August 10: Bucs at Bengals, 7:00 p.m. ET, locals
- August 10: 49ers at Titans, 7:00 p.m. ET, locals
- August 10: Seahawks at Chargers, 7:00 p.m. ET, locals
- August 10: Saints at Cardinals, 8:00 p.m. ET, locals
- August 11: Broncos at Colts, 1:00 p.m. ET, NFL Network, locals
- August 11: Cowboys at Rams, 4:30 p.m. ET, NFL Network, locals
Can you watch NFL preseason games for free?
This ultimately depends on where exactly you live and what channel your local team is playing on (it varies based on market; you can find the broadcast info for different markets right here), but for the most part, you can watch a live stream of in-market games and nationally televised games on Fubo.
The base “Pro” channel package includes ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC in pretty much every market, while CW and MyTV are available in a select number of markets, as well. NFL Network–which will televise many out-of-market games live and every single preseason game on replay–is also included.
Fubo will run you $80 per month, but it comes with a seven-day free trial. As such, if there’s only one specific game you’re interested in, you can sign up, watch the game and then cancel your subscription before having to pay anything.
YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream are both options here, as well. YouTube TV’s “Base Plan” includes ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC in most markets, CW and MyTV in select markets and NFL Network, plus it’s the only way to get NFL Sunday Ticket if you plan on watching out-of-market games during the regular season. DirecTV Stream’s “Entertainment” channel package has ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC in most markets, as well as CW and MyTV in a couple of markets. If you want NFL Network, you’ll need to go up to the “Choice” bundle.
Both YouTube TV and DirecTV Stream offer five-day free trials.
Watch out-of-market NFL preseason games on NFL+
If you’re trying to watch a game that’s out of your market (and isn’t nationally televised), you can do that with a subscription to NFL+. It costs just $7 per month or $50 for the season.
In addition to being able to watch a live stream of any out-of-market NFL preseason game, you’ll also get access to NFL Network and be able to watch live local and primetime regular season games on your phone or tablet.
Watch NFL preseason games from abroad
Those who are outside of the US and China can watch a live stream of every single NFL game (preseason, regular season and playoffs) with a subscription to DAZN. If you’re in Canada, all of that is included in a regular DAZN subscription, while those in other countries will need to sign up for Game Pass International through DAZN.
If you’re looking for another option, a virtual private network (VPN) can hide your location and connect you to a digital server in another country, such as the US. This allows you to access sites such as Fubo, YouTube TV or DirecTV Stream even if you’re abroad. We recommend NordVPN for this purpose, but you can also check out our rundown of the 10 best VPN services for some other options.
