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The best and brightest superstars in tennis battle it out on cushioned acrylic hard courts during the 2026 Australian Open, which is the first grand slam of the year.
In 2026, the Australian Open takes place at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia starting on Sunday, Jan 11 with daily qualifying rounds. The tournament itself starts Sunday, Jan. 18 with men’s and women’s play.
At a Glance: How to Watch Australian Open 2026 Online
The tournament broadcasts across ESPN, while the tennis tournament also livestreams on ESPN Unlimited.
The Australian Open matches are televised live on ESPN (with highlights and analysis on Tennis Channel), despite a 16-hour time difference between Melbourne and New York City, or a 19-hour difference between Melbourne and Los Angeles. Check out a complete schedule here.
How to Watch the Australian Open Online
Cord-cutters can watch the Australian Open on any live TV streaming service that carries ESPN, such as DirecTV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV and others — some of which offer free trials, so you can livestream for free without cable. The web-based services also let you stream the Australian Open tennis matches on your smartphone, tablet, laptop or smart TV.
Keep reading to find out how to watch tennis matches with and without a cable subscription, including options to watch the Australian Open for free.
How to Watch the Australian Open Without Cable
Since the Australian Open broadcasts across ESPN, matches are available on live TV streaming services that carry these networks. If you act fast, you can watch the tennis matches online for free through some of the free trial offers below.
Watch the Australian Open on DirecTV’s MySports genre pack. All of the cable alternative’s packages offer ESPN, while it includes more than 20 sports channels — such as FOX Sports, NBA TV, NHL Network, TNT and much more, as well as local networks, like ABC, NBC and FOX. Also, the streamer has a five-day free trial available, which only lasts for five days, but that’s more than enough time to watch matches. You can either cancel or keep the service after the free trial is over — prices start at $69.99 to watch the Australian Open.
Best For ESPN
ESPN Unlimited
ESPN Unlimited is live-streaming college football games this season, in particularly the Peach Bowl. If you’re not a subscriber, you can sign up for ESPN Unlimited for $29.99 per month.
ESPN Unlimited includes all of the sports network’s channels, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ABC on ESPN, ESPNU, ESPNEWS and others, as well as original programming, such as The Pat McAfee Show, 30 For 30, McEnroe’s Places, Man in the Arena: Tom Brady, Southern Hoops: A History of SEC Basketball, Deion’s Double Play and others. Meanwhile, it comes with streaming access to live sports from NBA, UFC, Formula 1, NHL, MLB and other sports leagues.
Watch ESPN along with more than 200 other news, entertainment and sports channels with a subscription to Fubo, which starts at $48.99 for the first month of series and then $73.99 per month afterward with the streamer’s current deals. The online TV streaming service offers a free trial for new subscribers, so you can watch matches online for free during that period.
You can watch ESPN with a subscription to Hulu + Live TV. The streaming service has access to more than 90 live channels — like BET, CNN, Food Network and more — starting at $89.99 per month and comes with Hulu’s entire streaming library, as well as Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited. Hulu + Live TV offers a three-day free trial for new subscribers.
Sling might be a good fit to watch ESPN, while the live TV streaming service is on sale for half off your first month. With Sling Orange, you can begin watching starting at $45.99 monthly afterwards. Sling Orange has AMC, BBC America, CNN, Comedy Central, Food Network and other channels.
Please note: Pricing and channel availability depends on your TV market.
How to Watch the Australian Open With Cable
Since the Australian Open 2026 broadcasts on ESPN, you can watch through your cable TV provider, or livestream tennis matches online on ESPN.com, or TennisChannel.com, with your cable TV account login.
How to Watch the Australian Open Outside of the U.S.
Outside of the U.S.? You can still stream the Australian Open 2026 on any of the streaming services above when paired with ExpressVPN. It’s a virtual private network that lets you legally access U.S. web servers — even if you’re in another country — to stream on a smart TV, smartphone, tablet and laptop. Learn more about ExpressVPN here.
Watch the Australian Open 2026 online without cable and livestream the tennis tournament free with DirecTV.
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