Six years ago, the government rejected a House of Lords select committee proposal to add the Champions League final to the list of “crown jewels” events, which would have ensured it would always be free-to-air.
Highlights of the Champions League final will be available on the BBC Sport website and across social media channels 15 minutes after the trophy lift, and on BBC iPlayer and television later in the evening.
Live commentary will also be on BBC Radio 5 Live.
The Champions League final had been free on ITV each year from 1993 – with the exception of the 1994 final, which the BBC showed live – until BT Sport won the rights, starting from 2015-16.
BT Sport continued to make it available without a subscription through to 2023, simultaneously broadcasting the game on its YouTube channel.
This changed after BT Sport was bought by Warner Bros Discovery and rebranded as TNT Sports.
While the finals remained available without cost, fans needed to sign up for a discovery+ account to get access.
Discovery+ has been replaced by Warner Bros Discovery’s new streaming service, HBO Max, which has no free option.
Fans will not need a full TNT Sports subscription, and can instead sign up for HBO Max for one month.
The cheapest subscription starts at £4.99, which would include all three matches, though most Sky customers already get HBO Max at no extra cost.
From 2027-28, TNT Sports will lose its European rights.
Paramount+ has picked up the Champions League, while the Europa League and the Conference League will move to Sky Sports.
Warner Bros Discovery has been approached for comment.
Source:
www.bbc.com
