Man City’s pursuit of a treble continues on Saturday, as they face Championship underdogs Sheffield United in this FA Cup semifinal at Wembley.
Having seen off Bayern Munich in their midweek Champions League quarterfinal, and with the Premier League title race pendulum now swinging in their favor away from Arsenal, coach Pep Guardiola’s attention now turns to this David-versus-Goliath knockout clash.
Second-tier Sheffield United are having a strong season in the Championship, with automatic promotion back to the Premier League almost secured, making their deep run in this tournament a nice added bonus. The odds may be ominously stacked against the Blades as they prepare to face Erling Haaland and co., but having come this far, and with confidence running high within the squad, could we see another “magic of the FA Cup” moment?
Below, we’ll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to watch the game live, wherever you are in the world.
Manchester City skipper Ilkay Gündoğan could be lifting three different trophies by the end of the season, and will be keen for his side to avoid an FA Cup upset on Saturday.
Manchester City vs. Sheffield United: When and where?
Man City face Sheffield United in this FA Cup semifinal in the neutral setting of Wembley Stadium in London on Saturday, April 22. Kickoff is set for 4:45 p.m. BST local time in the UK (11:45 a.m. ET, 8:45 a.m. PT in the US and Canada, and 1:45 a.m. AEST on April 23 in Australia).
How to watch the Man City vs. Sheffield United game online from anywhere using a VPN
If you find yourself unable to view the game locally, you may need a different way to watch the game — that’s where using 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, and it’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you’re able to 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 Canada, 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 the Man City vs. Sheffield United game in the US
This cup match at Old Trafford is streaming exclusively live in the US on ESPN Plus. Kickoff is at 11:45 a.m. ET (8:45 a.m. PT) on Saturday for viewers in the States.
ESPN’s standalone streaming service costs $10 a month or $100 for an annual subscription. With it, you’ll be able to watch all of this season’s FA Cup fixtures, including this intriguing match-up at Old Trafford. Read our ESPN Plus review.
Livestream the Man City vs. Sheffield United game for free in the UK
The great news for footy fans in the UK is that free-to-air broadcasters BBC and ITV are sharing live broadcast duties for this season’s FA Cup.
This fixture is being shown exclusively on ITV1, with coverage starting at 4 p.m. BST ahead of the 4:45 p.m. kickoff.
With the match being broadcast on ITV1, that also means you’ll also be able to watch the game online for free via the network’s on-demand streaming service, ITVX (formerly ITV Hub).
The service has an updated app that’s available for Android and Apple mobile devices, as well as a vast array of smart TVs.
Livestream Manchester City vs. Sheffield United game in Canada
Canadian soccer fans looking to watch this big FA Cup fixture can watch all the action live via Sportsnet.
Sportsnet is available via most cable operators, but cord-cutters can subscribe to the network’s standalone streaming service SN Now instead, with prices starting at CA$15 per month or CA$150 per year.
Livestream Manchester United vs. Fulham game in Australia
ViacomCBS now holds the broadcast rights for the FA Cup in Australia, which means you can now watch matches from the tournament live Down Under via streaming service Paramount Plus. You’ll just have to set an alarm for the early hours of Sunday morning: kickoff is at 1:45 a.m. AEST.
An Australian Paramount Plus subscription currently costs AU$9 a month, which gives you access to Paramount’s coverage of this year’s tournament, as well as Hollywood movies such as Top Gun: Maverick and original shows like Picard and Tulsa King.
Quick tips for streaming the FA Cup using a VPN
- With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming FA Cup matches 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.
