Rugby on TV this Christmas: How to watch

Here are the details of matches being televised this festive season

Rugby on TV this Christmas: How to watch

Sport is traditionally a common fixture on TV over Christmas and while the latest Covid-19 outbreak may have led to a few matches being postponed and the absence of fans at others, there is still a feast of action to watch over the festive season.

Matches in the Allianz Premier 15s, Gallagher Premiership and United Rugby Championship will all be televised over the next couple of weeks (barring any further Covid-enforced postponements) and we have put together the following guide so you know when and where to tune in.

How to watch Premier 15s rugby on TV this Christmas

There is only one Premier 15s match taking place over the Christmas-New Year period, but the good news is that it is being shown on TV in the UK.

Harlequins v Wasps is the first of the Big Game 13 double-header at Twickenham. The match between the sides currently ranked fourth and fifth in the table kicks off at 2.15pm and you can watch it live on BT Sport 1.

Don’t worry if you don’t have a BT Sport contract because there is a monthly pass that gives you instant access to all four of their sport channels for just £25.

How to watch Premiership rugby on TV this Christmas

There are two rounds of Premiership action taking place over the festive period, with six matches live on BT Sport in the UK.

Sunday 26 December 

Bristol v Leicester (2pm) Live on BT Sport 2

Bath v Gloucester (4.30pm) Live on BT Sport 2

Monday 27 December

Harlequins v Northampton (5pm) Live on BT Sport 1

Saturday 1 January

Sale v Wasps (2pm) Live on BT Sport

Exeter v Bristol (4.30pm) Live on BT Sport

Sunday 2 January

Gloucester v Harlequins (3pm) Live on BT Sport

BT Sport has a contract-free monthly pass for £25 that allows you to watch live action on their channels if you’d rather not commit to a long-term deal.

How to watch URC rugby on TV this Christmas

Three United Rugby Championship matches – Ospreys v Dragons, Munster v Leinster and Ulster v Connacht – have been postponed due to positive Covid cases, but there are still a number of derby games taking place.

All matches will be shown live on Premier Sports in the UK and Ireland. If you have a Sky Sports or Virgin Media contract, you can add Premier Sports to your package from £12.99 a month. Or subscribe to Premier Player so you can stream matches online from £12.99 a month.

Certain matches are also available to watch on free-to-air TV, like regional BBC channels and TG4 in Ireland.

Here is a full listing of matches with the channels they will be shown on.

Friday 24 December 

Zebre Parma v Benetton (1pm) Live on Premier Sports

Sunday 26 December

Cardiff v Scarlets (3pm) Live on Premier Sports & BBC Wales

Monday 27 December

Glasgow Warriors v Edinburgh (7pm) Live on Premier Sports

Saturday 1 January

Dragons v Cardiff (3pm) Live on Premier Sports & BBC Wales

Connacht v Munster (5.15pm) Live on Premier Sports

Scarlets v Ospreys (5.15pm) Live on Premier Sports & S4C

Ulster v Leinster (7.35pm) Live on Premier Sports & TG4

Sunday 2 January

Benetton v Zebre Parma (1pm) Live on Premier Sports

Edinburgh v Glasgow Warriors (2pm) Live on Premier Sports

How to watch rugby on TV this Christmas from outside your country

If you’re abroad, but still want to watch your local rugby coverage, you can do so by using a VPN – Virtual Private Network.

Our friends at TechRadar have tested hundreds of VPN and recommend ExpressVPN, which is easy to use, has strong security features and allows you to watch on several devices at once, including smart TVs and phones, iPads, tablets, PCs and Macs.

Plus, ExpressVPN comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. You can try it out for a month for free or sign up for an annual plan and get three months free.

We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:

  1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service)
  2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad

We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing. 

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