How to Watch Tennis At Home
- CAROLINE DIDELOTNot all tennis streaming can be found in one place
Even though we are here to bring you tips and tricks about going to tennis tournaments, we’d be lying if we said we didn’t spend the majority of our time streaming tennis matches. So it seems just as important to tell you about how to stream tennis as it is to attend it –– because the truth is, tennis is one of the most fragmented sports for fans to follow.
US-based viewers should subscribe to 3 apps to get year-round tennis (that includes ATP & WTA - men’s and women’s) right to their living room.
Where to watch*:
Australian Open: ESPN Unlimited ($29.99/mo)
Roland Garros: HBO Max ($18.49/mo –– the lower cost option does not include sports)
Wimbledon: ESPN Unlimited ($29.99/mo)
US Open: ESPN Unlimited ($29.99/mo)
Everything else (Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Cincinnati, etc.): Tennis Channel ($11.99/mo)
Monthly total: $60.47 (not including taxes)
Note: It is critical to get ESPN Unlimited as opposed to the lower cost tiers (ESPN+/ESPN Select) because live matches air on the actual ESPN and ESPN2 channels.
*These prices are reflective of when this article was written and subject to increases.
The Best of Ten Hack
Now, if you’re not feeling euphoric about spending almost a thousand dollars a year on tennis streaming, our best recommendation is to only pay for ESPN and HBO Max during months in which there are grand slams. This takes the number of months you need to subscribe to anything but tennis channel from 12 to 4. It’s much more economical and frankly it’s what we do so long as we don’t forget about our subscriptions when the tournaments are over.
Why is tennis streaming not all in one place?
Everyone wants a piece of the action. Each Grand Slam negotiates its own deals with streaming platforms for broadcast rights, and it differs region by region. The leagues (ATP and WTA) don’t own the media rights –– the governing bodies of the tournaments do.
Unlike the NFL or NBA, which have streaming all in one place, watching tennis at home is a sport in and of itself. We say this because we have suffered through countless hours trying to figure out where to stream a match, followed by buffering broadcasts and apps suddenly logging us out (and thus shutting us out) of matches. We’re not alone. According toeMarketer, some 46% of Americans have missed a sports game they were looking for because they couldn't track down where to stream something. An additional 46% missed part of a game for the same reason. The truth is, watching matches at home is confusing, and there is no clear roadmap for navigating it.
The same can be said for attending matches in person. No matter where you go, you will always be paying to watch tennis, whether that’s your ticket to the match or your subscription to stream them. Our best recommendation? When you can, invest your dollars and go in person. There is no better experience than seeing an out-of-this-world point happen just a few yards from where you’re sitting, and being surrounded by not just one but hundreds of tennis fans holding their breath right alongside you.