The opening weekend’s prime fixture takes place at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.The opening weekend’s prime fixture takes place at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. The opening weekend’s prime fixture takes place at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
Ireland begin their quest for an unprecedented three-peat on Saturday as the defending champions host England at the Aviva in the pick of this weekend’s opening Six Nations matches.
With Andy Farrell on sabbatical as he prepares to take charge of the British and Irish Lions, Simon Easterby has stepped in as interim head coach for the Boys in Green for this tournament.
England were the only side to beat Ireland in the 2024 Six Nations, but Steve Borthwick’s men have since struggled to match that performance at Twickenham. A rejig has seen Maro Itoje replace Jamie George as captain for the Red Roses for this tournament.
Below, we’ll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to stream this Six Nations 2025 match, no matter where you are in the world.
Ireland vs. England: When and where?
Ireland host England at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday, Feb. 1. Kickoff is set for 4:45 p.m. GMT in Ireland and the UK, which makes it a 11:45 a.m. ET or 8:45 a.m. PT kickoff in the US and Canada, and a 3:45 a.m. AEDT start in the early hours of Sunday, Feb. 2, in Australia.
How to watch Ireland vs. England online from anywhere using a VPN
If you can’t view this year’s Six Nations locally, you may need a different way to watch this match; this is where a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic. It’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you can virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Australia, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.
Livestream Ireland vs. England in the US
Select Six Nations matches this season are being broadcast in the US on NBC, including this big game. The best option for watching the tournament, however, is via the streaming service Peacock, which is showing every match live. You’ll need a Peacock Premium or Premium Plus account to catch games live.
Watch Ireland vs. England for free in the UK
Rugby fans in the UK are once again among the luckiest in the world, with all matches of the 2025 Six Nations set to be shown live on free-to-air networks BBC and ITV. This means viewers in the UK will be able to stream every game for free on ITVX. and BBC iPlayer. This match will be shown live on ITV 1, with coverage starting at 4 p.m. GMT.
Watch Ireland vs. England for free in Ireland
Live coverage is split between free-to-air terrestrial broadcasters RTÉ and Virgin Media in Ireland. That means you’ll be able to stream games for free on their streaming platforms, Virgin Media Player and RTE Player. This fixture will be shown on Virgin Media One, with coverage starting at 4 p.m. GMT.
Stream Ireland vs. England in Australia
Rugby fans Down Under can watch Six Nations matches on streaming service Stan Sport, which has exclusive rights to show games live in Australia this season.
Stream Ireland vs. England in Canada
If you want to stream Six Nations games live in Canada, subscribe to DAZN Canada. The service has exclusive broadcast rights to the tournament this season.
Stream Ireland vs. England in New Zealand
Pay TV broadcaster Sky Sport has broadcast rights to show every 2025 Six Nations game live in New Zealand.
Quick tips for streaming the 2025 Six Nations using a VPN
- With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming Six Nations Rugby action live may vary.
- If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
- If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
- All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
- And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.
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