How to watch Tour de France 2021 online

On the 26^th of June, 23 UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) Teams will start the Tour de France 2021 at Brest and be on their way to Landerneau. And that’s only the beginning of the 3,383-kilometer route. 

While TDF has fans worldwide, it’s not going to be streamed everywhere. However, if you’re a fan, we have the perfect solution for you – a VPN. It provides privacy and security and unblocks all regions the competition is streamed in. So, buckle up!

Here is everything you need to know about watching the Tour de France 2021 online with a VPN, regardless of the country you’re in and the device you want to watch it on. Don’t worry; it’s not rocket science!

Quick guide on how to stream Tour de France with VPN

To watch the Tour de France 2021 online without a cable with a VPN, you have to go through the following steps:

1. Get a VPN. Some of the best results I got were with NordVPN, now 72% OFF!
2. Connect to a server in a country that is an official broadcaster.
3. Connect to a streaming service. Recommend NBC Sports for US viewers, or ITV for Britain.
4. Enjoy watching!

Why do you need a VPN to watch Tour de France?

The 2021 TDF has a list of official broadcasters that have exclusive streaming rights. As a result, no other streaming service will show the event. They can’t. So, your only option is to access a streaming service that is one of the competition’s official broadcaster.

However, that poses another problem. What if all the official broadcasters are not accessible in your region? Well, that’s how a VPN can help – it bypasses the restrictions. By installing and using a VPN, you can make it seem that you’re from a region where the blackouts are non-existent. Let’s say the UK.

Best streaming services to watch Tour de France 2021

You can watch the TDF 2021 on France TV, ITV, NBC Sports Gold, and many other streaming services. Some of them are listed down below:

• Hulu + Live TV – $64.99/month
• Fubo TV – $64.99/month
• Sling TV – $30/month
• Youtube TV – $64.99/month
• AT&T TV Now (formerly DirectTV) – $59.99/month
• FloBikes – $12.99/month

What happens when none of the streaming services above are available in your country? You find a premium VPN and switch to a location where they are. Here are a few streaming services that broadcast the event and the suitable VPNs to unblock them.

• ESPN – while only American viewers can access this service, NordVPN will unblock it for everyone.
• Hulu + Live TV – once again, this service is exclusive to the United States, and not all VPNs can unblock it. ExpressVPN can, though.
• Youtube TV – this is not a difficult streaming service to unblock, which is why you can use a cheaper VPN, such as Surfshark.

While the streaming services you see above come with a free trial that lasts a week, keep in mind that the tournament has 21 stages happening in 23 days. The free trial won’t be enough, so ready your wallet.

Word of caution: do not access websites that stream the tournament for free. When something’s too good to be true, it usually is. Illegal streamers typically require your personal information, and you don’t know where it’s going to get. They usually sell it. It’s best if you visit the event’s official website and check the Official Broadcasters menu in the top-left corner.

How to stream Tour de France 2021 from your country

Watching the Tour de France 2021 can be different from one country to the other. So, if you go on vacation or travel abroad for work during that time, you may hit a geo-restrictions wall. With a VPN, however, you can break down that wall.

Below, you’ll find instructions on watching the competition online in Canada, the US, and the UK.

Tour de France in Canada

The official TDF 2021 broadcaster in Canada is FloBikes. All you have to do is get a subscription for $12.99/month. It allows you to stream on one device. For an additional $5, you can stream on four different devices.

Here is what you have to do if you travel outside of Canada and still want to watch the competition:

1. Download and install a VPN on your laptop/phone/tablet. You can go for NordVPN.
2. Connect to a Canadian server.
3. Open FloBikes and enjoy!

Tour de France in the USA

The Tour de France 2021 will be on NBC Sports in the US, which is included in different streaming services, such as Hulu +Live TV or Youtube TV. Among others. Both Hulu and Youtube charge $64.99/month for a subscription. If you’re looking for cheaper alternatives, NBC Sports is also available on Sling TV’s most affordable package – Blue. It costs only $30/month.

When you travel to a country whose access to the competition is restricted, you can still watch TDF 2021. Here’s how:

1. Download and install a VPN on whatever device you have with you (laptop, phone, tablet). We had great results with NordVPN.
2. Connect to a US server.
3. Open whatever US streaming service you’re subscribed to and watch the competition from abroad.

Tour de France in the UK

In the UK, the official Tour de France broadcaster is ITV. If you don’t already have an ITV Hub+ subscription, know that it costs only £3.99/month. Just sign up, sit back, and enjoy.

If during the competition you’re not in the UK, you can still watch the sporting event on ITV. Here’s what you have to do:

1. Download and install a VPN on your device. We suggest NordVPN.
2. Connect to a British server.
3. Open ITV in your browser or via the mobile app and enjoy the tournament.

Watch Tour de France 2021 without cable from anywhere

If you’re from a country other than the ones listed above, check if the TDF 2021 is broadcasted in your region. If not, you can use a VPN and access a streaming service that broadcasts the event. Like ESPN or NBC Sports.

How to watch Tour de France on your device

If you live in a country where Tour de France is not restricted, things are easy as long as you have a subscription to the right streaming service. However, for all of you that don’t have that opportunity, a VPN enters the equation. The steps for the most common device are provided below.

Watch Tour de France on PC

Whether you want to watch TDF online on a PC that runs on Windows or Mac, the steps are pretty much the same.

1. Download and install VPN on your computer. My recommendation is NordVPN.
2. Connect to a server located in a country that streams the event. Let’s say in the US, in which case you must connect to a American server.
3. Log in to the streaming service that you have subscribed to and enjoy!

Watch Tour de France on your Phone

To watch the TDF 2021 on your phone, know that it’s possible to use a VPN on Android and iOS devices. While the phones may be different, the steps are similar.

1. Download a VPN and install it on your phone. For both Android and iOS users, we recommend NordVPN.
2. Choose an IP address from a country that streams the cycling event.
3. Connect to your prefered streaming service and enjoy!

Watch Tour de France on Kodi

Kodi is a free media player you can use to watch the TDF 2021 online without cable on your TV. It has addons for approximately 30 streaming services, including some that stream the upcoming cycling competition. Here’s how to bypass the geo-restrictions:

1. Download and install a VPN on your router or laptop. We recommend NordVPN for Kodi users.
2. Connect to a server in a country where TDF  is available.
3. Go to Kodi’s repository and search for your preferred streaming service’s addon. NBC Sports is available, for instance.
4. Install the addon on Kodi.
5. Connect Kodi to the router or laptop on which you installed the VPN.
6. Open the addon and log in. If you don’t have an account, create one first.
7. Enjoy the competition!

Watch Tour de France on Roku

Here’s what you have to do to watch the Tour de France 2021 on your Roku device:

1. Download and install a VPN on your router or on a laptop that can create a hotspot. Once again, we recommend NordVPN for Roku users.
2. Connect to a US server.
3. Go to Roku Channel Store. Download and install NBC Sports.
4. Insert your NBC login credentials.
5. Connect your Roku device to the router or laptop on which you installed the VPN.
6. Watch the TDF 2021 on Roku!

Watch Tour de France on Smart TV

In case you want to watch the tournament on your smart TV, be it an LG, Samsung, or any other brand, here are the steps you must follow:

1. Change the region of your smart TV to an area where the TDF 2021 is available. For instructions on how to do that, check the brand’s website.
2. Download and install a VPN on your router. NordVPN is our favorite.
3. Connect your smart TV to the router you installed the VPN on.
4. In the smart TV’s app store, look for an app that streams the competition. Download and install it.
5. Open the streaming service’s app and sign in. Create an account first if you don’t have one.
6. Enjoy the event on your smart TV.

Note: when you want to use a VPN for streaming purposes only, you can use the smart DNS feature of your VPN. The perks are pretty much the same, but the connection is faster.

How to choose a VPN to watch Tour de France

Choosing a VPN to watch the Tour de France is easy as long as you are aware of what to look for.  Here are the primary factors to consider when making a decision:

• Paid vs. free VPN –a free VPN will most likely sell your data online, and your connection is not securely encrypted. Always go for paid VPNs.
• No-log policy – ensuring anonymity is crucial when it comes to VPNs
• The more servers, the better – the more servers a VPN has, the faster the connection will be.

Our top 3 VPNs:

1. NordVPN – top-rated VPN with over 5900 servers that unblocks all major streaming services.
2. Surfshark – has over 3200 servers, supports several tunneling protocols, and unblocks several streaming services.
3. ExpressVPN – easy-to-use VPN with over 3000 servers. It unblocks all major streaming services.

Tour de France overview

The upcoming cycling tournament will take place starting 26^th of June 2021 and ends on 18^th of July 2021. Twenty-three teams will go through 21 stages to win one of the longest tours in history – 3,383 kilometers. The route will start in Brest and will end in Paris on Champs-Élysées.

In 2020, the event was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. That didn’t stop Tadej Pogačar to occupy the first position in the competition. This year, the top 10 contenders to the title are:

1. Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates)
2. Primoz Roglič (Jumbo-Visma)
3. Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious)
4. Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo)
5. David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ)
6. Steven Kruijswijk (Jumbo-Visma)
7. Nairo Quintana (Arkéa-Samsic)
8. Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo)
9. Guillaume Martin (Cofidis)
10. Tao Geoghegan Hart (Ineos Grenadiers)

Let us know who you think will take home the trophy this year.

For more news and updates about the event, check out the official website or Twitter account. And, if you tried watching the competition in the past with a VPN and things didn’t go as planned, let us know in the comments. We can help you avoid the issue this year.

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