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Update: The 4th test is over, but the 5th and final test of the series is due to begin on July 27 at 11 a.m. BST. The same information about tuning into a free Ashes live stream listed below will also work for this week’s cricket. 

Original article: What a nail-bitter we have today as, once again, England find themselves at the mercy of the weather, and so do we if we want to watch an Ashes live stream today. Another rainy day is forecast in the northwest of England, but weather permitting, if you want to watch England vs. Australia online for free, we can help show you how. 

The official UK Ashes live stream is on Sky Sports, which isn’t the cheapest sports subscription. An Ashes live stream is showing for free in Australia, though. If you’re not in Australia, you must use a VPN, or virtual private network, to access that streaming option like a local would. A VPN spoofs your device’s location to match the streaming country of your choice; otherwise, the streaming site’s geolocation detection will block you. 

The VPN we’ve highlighted below is one of the best in the business and super simple to set up, with no technical expertise required. It’ll help unlock global streaming options and greatly enhance your privacy and general security across your devices, so you’ll probably find a use for one long after the match.

With its consistent performance, reliable security, and expansive global streaming features, ExpressVPN is the best VPN out there, excelling in every spec and offering many advanced features that makes it exceptional. Better yet, you can save up to 49% and get an extra three months for free today.

Watch England vs. Australia Ashes live stream for free from anywhere

The Ashes live stream is a premium event in most countries, meaning you’ll need to sign up for a paid streaming-service package to watch the Ashes online. In the UK, you’ll find Sky Sports has the rights to it, meaning you can opt for a Sky Sports bundle or perhaps the slightly cheaper Now TV route.

Not in Australia, though, because it’s being shown for free on the 9Now channel and website. A geo-block will hit you if you try to watch from outside Australia. A VPN will get around that for you, though. Get and set your VPN location to Australia, create a free login for the 9Now website, and you’re all set for the rest of the weekend’s Ashes action.

Our preferred option out of all the best VPN providers is ExpressVPN, which comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee if you’re unsatisfied.

How to watch the Ashes with a VPN

  • Sign up for a VPN if you don’t have one.
  • Install it on the device you’ll use to watch the match.
  • Turn it on and set it to any Australian location.
  • Go to 9Now.
  • Create a free login and sign in.
  • Watch the Ashes for free.
  • Starts: Today 6 a.m. ET / 11 a.m. BST / 12 p.m. CET / 8 p.m. AEST

Note: The use of VPNs is illegal in certain countries, and using VPNs to access region-locked streaming content might constitute a breach of the terms of use for certain services. Insider does not endorse or condone the illegal use of VPNs.

Brendan Griffiths

Senior Commerce Director

Brendan is the Senior Commerce Director at Insider Inc, having joined the company in early 2023. He oversees a wide range of our eCommerce content covering deals, popular sales events, How to Watch guides, and VPN articles. He also utilizes his extensive experience in SEO and Google algorithm updates to help improve content and rankings for a wide range of our shoppable buying guides, reviews, versus content, and more.
He has over 16 years of online journalism experience and a UK University degree in Journalism and Film & Media. Initially working as a freelance gaming journalist and eCommerce editor, he later joined Future Publishing in 2016 as their first-ever Deals Writer at TechRadar. Over the next six years, he became the Deals Editor at TechRadar, then Managing Editor of Hardware & eCommerce at GamesRadar before moving over to Future’s mobile tech division to become the eCommerce Content Director for Android Central, iMore, and Windows Central.
Over the years, Brendan has written about a wide range of subjects. Be it covering game previews at GamesCom in Germany, listing the best Amazon Prime Day deals, reviewing gaming controllers, Kindles, and folding smartphones, or even international guides on buying a mattress – he’s still quite annoyed that the UK and US have different sizes and names for them.
More recently, he’s been covering international How to Watch guides on various sporting events like Formula 1, tennis, Champions League, cricket, or the hottest new movies and TV shows.  
Outside of work, you’ll find Brendan trying to make a dent in various watchlists across streaming apps or playing games on his Series X or PS5, usually downloading (hoarding) yet more Game Pass games or grumbling about how open-world games should be scrapped for a solid 10-hour experience like the Uncharted series.


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