How to watch MotoGP and Formula 1 live, without Sky
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The 2019 MotoGP and Formula 1 World Championship season has finally started and motor racing fans are looking forward to enjoying all the races on their TV, smartphones and tablets. However, since Sky and BT Sport has acquired exclusive rights for these races between them, these kinds of events can only be enjoyed live on paid platforms. However, you should not throw in the towel just yet. There are several alternative ways to watch.
Shortcuts
- Free-to-air races without subscription
- Direct races without subscription
- Live streaming with and without subscription
Free to air MotoGP races for non-subscribers to Sky and BT Sport
At least as far as MotoGP is concerned, BT Sport has got things wrapped up. You can BT Sports to your existing BT Broadband package for an extra six quid a month, but if you use a different provider for your internet things are more difficult.
Fortunately, you don't have to pay to watch MotoGP, providing you are willing to wait a while. Quest TV has managed to secure a deal to show the races on the Monday after they happen. They are shown at both 6 pm and 11 pm. Just try to avoid finding out who won to make it more exciting!
Quest TV is available on Freeview at channel 37 in SD and 114 in HD. The upcoming races you can look forward to are as follows.
- Italy, 2 June 2019
- Spain (Barcelona), 16 June 2019
- The Netherlands, 30 June
- Czech Republic, 4 August 2019
- Austria, 11 August 2019
- San Marino, 15 September 2019
- Japan, 20 October 2019
- Spain (Valencia), 17 November 2019
Direct of all races without a Sky subscription
Eurosport Deutschland
For those who own a dish or juggle with satellite TV, a valid alternative is represented by Eurosport Deutschland, which for several years has been a reference point for all fans of half of Europe, thanks to its high video quality.
To receive the German channel signal, simply point your satellite dish at the Astra satellite (19.2° East). Usually, the dishes are oriented towards the HotBird satellite (13° East), so be careful. In addition, you will need to set the following features on your decoder:
- 12226 MHz frequency
- Horizontal polarization
- Symbol rate 27500
- Fec 3/4
- QPSK modulation
RTL Germany
Just like the above method for Eurosport, the same can be done for RTL Germany. The free-to-air channel also shows live Formula 1 races. The quality is not quite as high as on Eurosport, and you'll have to put up with German commentary. Alternatively, you could mute the TV and listen to live commentary on the radio. You'll need to point your satellite dish to 19° East to be in with a chance of picking up the signal.
Live streaming
MotoGP Pass
VideoPass is the official video platform of MotoGP where you can see all the races, qualifications and tests of the classes MotoGP, Moto2, Moto3 and MotoE, but also press conferences and presentations of the preseason. All this, LIVE and on-demand through the official MotoGP app.
You can buy different types of subscription to VideoPass. Here are the respective prices together:
- VideoPass season 2019 to 139.99 euros
- VideoPass season 2019 in 4 monthly installments from 35.99 euros
- Monthly VideoPass at 19.99 euros
- VideoPass for each event at 9,99 euro
Sky Go
For those who do not have the opportunity to follow the MotoGP Grand Prix on TV, Sky offers the opportunity to watch the races live streaming on SkyGo, the online service of the satellite platform. To use SkyGo you must be a Sky subscriber and use one of the supported devices (computer, smartphone and tablet). The SkyGo app is available on Google Play Store. SkyGo supports up to three devices at a time, so if you know a Sky subscriber, you could ask them very nicely for their login details...
Now TV
For those who do not have a Sky subscription but still want to watch MotoGP or Formula 1 without using decoders and a dish, you can subscribe to the Now TV service, the on-demand service owned by Sky. Choosing the sports ticket (from £7.99/day or £12.99/week) you can enjoy the best of live sporting events streaming on your PC, smartphone, tablet and TV by renewing the subscription monthly, without restrictions of duration and without penalties.
Now TV also offers a 14-day free trial so you can try out the quality of the service and only decide later whether to continue using the service or not. NOW TV's Ticket Sport costs are as follows:
- Daily ticket: £8.99
- Weekly ticket: £14.99
- Monthly ticket: £33.99
- Monthly mobile only pass: £5.99
TV8
TV8 also allows you to watch MotoGP and Formula 1 live streaming for free on its website without the need to register. To follow the events in live streaming, you need to access the TV8 website and wait for the channel to start streaming automatically in a few seconds. It's an Italian TV channel so you will need to use a VPN and a little Google Translate to navigate yourself around - unless you speak Italian!
How do you follow sports events like MotoGP and Formula 1? Do you have any more advice for our readers? Let us know.
