Introduction Amazon Prime is a paid membership service from Amazon and comes with a lot of benefits including free two-day shipping, free access to Prime Video, Prime Music, Prime Reading and more. There is one main area that can be confusing, and that is whether the Amazon Prime membership covers free sports streaming. This article will look at what type of sports content is available for free for the prime members and what other types of sports they will need to pay for.
Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video is available for all Prime users. Prime Video consists of a number of movies, television shows and some sports content that customers can watch, with no extra costs involved. That said, you can watch some live and recorded sports on Prime Video, but you won’t get as many choices as you would with other sports streaming services.
Prime Video Channels However, there is more to watch with Prime Video than the shows included with a Prime Video subscription; there are Prime Video Channels. These you can access by paying an additional monthly fee to your prime video subscription. Additional sports programs are available from NBA League Pass, PBS Kids, Up Faith and Family, Noggin, CBS All Access, MLB TV, and PGA Tour Live. Although most of these are conveniently available to Prime members, most of the major league sports packages attract an extra charge.
Thursday Night Football Thursday Night Football is one of the sporting events that are offered for free for Prime members. Prime Video broadcasts 11 Thursday Night Football games for free to Prime members in over 200 countries and territories. Unlike some countries, there are no restrictions on the blackout of regions. In addition to the NFL games on Prime Video, the rest of the major professional and college leagues remain as Prime Video channels that require an additional fee.
Other Sports Included with Prime Other Sports Included with Prime Apart from Thursday Night Football, Prime members can also stream certain amateur and recreational sports for free. This includes newly formed sports such as Cornhole tournaments and Pickleball matches. There are also a few series that take a documentary approach and provides a glimpse into the lives of players and teams in different sports. However, for the real mainstream professional level or top college leagues, they are only available if you subscribe to the Prime Video Channels and pay for the service.
Additional Sports Channels and Packages The vast majority of sports viewers will have to pay a premium for the better live sports content through Amazon. Besides the Prime Video Channels already mentioned, some additional sports packages include:Besides the Prime Video Channels already mentioned, some additional sports packages include:
Basketball enthusiasts can watch games using NBA League Pass.
WNBA League Pass – women’s national basketball association for professional women.
ATP Tennis TV for professional men’s tennis tours
BritBox for Rugby, Cricket and many more International sports.
Cricket, rugby, and other international sporting events on ESPN Player
Sport facility for college games such as basketball, ice hockey, soccer, lacrosse, and softball The prime sports costs from $6-$15 per month in addition to the monthly/annual fee for accessing Amazon Prime. While it may not be cheaper than cable or satellite television, streaming sports through Amazon can still be slightly cheaper for the kind of content.
Local or In-Market games Another limitation that has been observed when it comes to live sports on Amazon Prime is the coverage of local games. Since most of the professional and college sports leagues on media rights agreements most of the live streams of the local games. This helps avoid such services as Amazon from posing competition to regional sport networks. For this, without paying for broadcasts, it’s impossible to watch local team games through Amazon Prime or with add-on sports packages.
How to Watch Free Sports Using Amazon While Amazon may not offer comprehensive free sports coverage, here are some tips to access content without spending extra:While Amazon may not offer comprehensive free sports coverage, here are some tips to access content without spending extra:
Enjoy the 11 Thursday Night Football games during NFL season
Visit www. primevideo. com and search for specific sports you may not have heard of such as Cornhole or College conference championships
Take advantage of the 30-day free trials that are offered for Prime Video Channels sports packages for a big game or a tournament playoffs.
Watch films such as classics, sports documentaries, and even sports-themed television series.
Borrow books about athletes, coaches and memorable games through your Prime Reading membership perks
Unfortunately, the truth is that most premium mainstream sports are available only with an add-on channel subscription with Amazon Prime. However, you can still watch some live events, limited sports-specific competitions, movies, TV shows, and sports-related books for free if you are a Prime member. Taking into account all the other shopping and entertainment aspects aside from sports on Amazon Prime, a subscription may still be worth it for fans.
Summary As more streaming services such as Amazon Prime change how consumers can watch live athletic events, there are still large disparities in which sports information is available for free for subscribed Prime customers versus conventional over-the-air and cable offerings. Esports lovers, especially those who are passionate about certain leagues, will likely have to subscribe to a premium service to access the desired events. However, membership at a Prime does come with some options to participate in some of the non-traditional or recreational forms of the sport. And the included Thursday Night Football games are a nice additional feature during the NFL season for the subscribers.