2023 Australian Open Live Stream: How to Watch the Tennis Tournament Online
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Grand Slam tennis is officially back for 2023 as we kick off the Australian Open in Melbourne.
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As always, there’s plenty of excitement to look forward to at this year’s tournament. Nine-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic is back after missing tournaments last year (including the 2022 Australian Open) upon refusing Covid-19 vaccination. He’ll be up against defending champion Rafael Nadal, as well as last year’s runner-up Daniil Medvedev. Sadly, fan-favorite and world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz is dealing with an injured leg, and won’t be competing in the tournament.
On the women’s side, world No. 1 Iga Swiatek is the top contender in Melbourne, though she’ll face tough opposition from the likes of Ons Jabeur, Jessica Pegula, and Caroline Garcia. The women’s singles competition has its own notable absences as well, including Venus Williams and two-time champion Naomi Osaka, who recently announced her pregnancy.
Looking to watch the tournament online this year? Read on for a full guide on how to watch the Australian Open online without cable, including a couple of ways to stream tennis games for free.
How to Watch the Australian Open Online for Free With a VPN
The best way to watch the Australian Open online for free is to use a VPN (virtual private network) like ExpressVPN or NordVPN to access live streams from Australia’s 9Now.
VPNs, for the unfamiliar, let you connect to servers that are typically geo-blocked in your device’s physical location. In other words, they “trick” your device into thinking it’s in another region, letting you access all the content normally unavailable in your physical location (such as, say, different Netflix libraries or other countries’ streaming services).
To watch the Australian Open for free using a VPN, first sign up for a reliable VPN like ExpressVPN or NordVPN. Both of these are fast, secure, and easy to use, and they’ll get you access to 9Now (an Australian streaming service showing all Grand Slam matches for free).
ExpressVPN and NordVPN are also relatively inexpensive: ExpressVPN costs $12.95 a month and NordVPN costs $11.99 per month, but both have 30-day money-back guarantees that you can take advantage of once the Australian Open is over. Plus, you can bring that monthly price way down by paying more upfront, which isn’t a bad idea since you can use a VPN to watch the other Grand Slam tournaments for free later this year. Read our comparison review of the two top-rated VPNs here.
ExpressVPN
Once you’ve signed up for ExpressVPN or NordVPN, add it to your web browser and set your location to any region in Australia. Then, sign up for a free 9Now account and enjoy free Australian Open live streams all tournament long.
NordVPN
How to Watch the Australian Open Online: Streaming Guide
Don’t feel like using a VPN? You’ve still got plenty of options to stream the 2023 Australian Open.
U.S. coverage of the tournament is spread across ESPN’s live TV channels and ESPN+, so you’ll need to get a live TV streaming service and ESPN+ to watch the Australian Open online. Below are some of the best services, including a couple with free trials that you can use to watch Australian Open matches for free.
1. Stream the Australian Open on ESPN+
A large chunk of Australian Open matches will be shown exclusively on ESPN+, which costs $9.99 per month or $99 a year and gets you a ton of live and on-demand sports content. You can also up the value by getting the Disney Bundle, which includes subscriptions to ESPN+, Hulu, and Disney+ for $12.99 a month.
ESPN+ Subscription
2. Stream the Australian Open on fuboTV
To watch the Australian Open matches shown on ESPN channels, you’ll need a live TV streaming service. We like fuboTV, which includes ESPN and ESPN2 in its 200+ channel lineup. fuboTV costs $69.99 a month, but your subscription starts with a seven-day free trial (use that window to watch Australian Open matches for free). Plus, fuboTV comes with 1000 hours of cloud DVR storage to record games shown at odd hours in the U.S.
Free Trial
3. Stream the Australian Open on DirecTV Stream
Another great live TV streaming service with ESPN and ESPN2 is DirecTV Stream, which also starts with a free trial (five days). After the free trial, DirecTV Stream costs $69.99 a month for its Entertainment package, which includes over 75 channels. You also get unlimited cloud DVR for recording Australian Open matches.
4. Stream the Australian Open on Sling
If you’re looking for a more budget-friendly live TV streaming service, check out Sling. At $40 a month for the Sling Orange package, it’s more affordable than the competition, but you still get live access to ESPN as well as 30 other live channels.
Sling Subscription
When is the Australian Open? 2023 Schedule
The 2023 Australian Open starts on Monday, Jan. 16 and runs through Sunday, Jan. 29. However, because Melbourne is 16 hours ahead of Easter Standard time, the dates are slightly different in the U.S. Here’s a full breakdown of the Australian Open schedule for viewers in the U.S:
Sun, Jan. 15 — 1st Round
Mon, Jan. 16 — 1st Round
Tue, Jan. 17— 2nd Round
Wed, Jan. 18 — 2nd Round
Thu, Jan. 19 — 3rd Round
Fri, Jan. 20 — 3rd Round
Sat, Jan. 21 — Round of 16
Mon, Jan. 23 — Quarterfinals
Tue, Jan. 24 — Quarterfinals
Wed, Jan. 25 — Semifinals
Thu, Jan. 26 — Mixed Doubles, Men’s Semifinals
Fri, Jan. 27 — Singles Finals
Sat, Jan. 28 — Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles, Men’s Singles Final
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