Manchester United, Liverpool among EPL matches postponed due to coronavirus

The Premier League, following the lead of most of the rest of the sports world, decided to suspend all play until April 4 following a Friday meeting to discuss the ongoing pandemic.

Initially, the Premier League indicated it would proceed with this weekend’s contests, including the Sunday match between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, and Monday’s Merseyside Derby between Liverpool and Everton. It even made an announcement Thursday night that the matches were on.

Within an hour, though, Arsenal announced that its manager, Mikel Arteta, had tested positive for COVID-19, the disease associated with the novel coronavirus, and that a number of first-team players would be self-quarantining in response. Then, Chelsea announced that one of its players, Callum Hudson-Odoi, tested positive.

Earlier in the week, an unspecified trio of Leicester City players came down with illness and the club said they were isolating due to coronavirus-like symptoms.

The Premier League, which aims to reschedule and play all the postponed contests, followed the lead of other major soccer leagues and federations in suspending competitions, including:

• La Liga, which is on a two-week hiatus;
• MLS, which suspended play until April 11 in a Thursday announcement;
• UEFA, which postponed Champions League and Europa League matches for next week (but allowed Manchester United and Wolves to play its Thursday Europa League matches as scheduled); and
• Concacaf, which suspended its Concacaf Champions League competition, which got in three of its four first-leg quarterfinal games on Tuesday and Wednesday, but paused play before Thursday’s scheduled LAFC-Cruz Azul match.

As of Friday morning, the Bundesliga was still set to play its weekend matches, though a number of them, including the Rivierederby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke, are being played behind closed doors. Liga MX was also scheduled to proceed as of Friday morning.

How to watch Premier League matches

When matches resume, the majority are on NBCSN, with the 12:30pm ET Saturday match typically on NBC, and all matches available on NBC Sports Gold. These streaming services provide fans the opportunity to catch Premier League action throughout the season.

1) FuboTV

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• Cost: $44.99 for your first month and $54.99 per month thereafter
• FuboTV devices: Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Android TV, iOS and Android devices
• Local channels: ABC, Fox, NBC, CBS, the CW (in some markets) (check local availability here)

FuboTV is a solid TV streaming service option, whether your tastes run to entertainment (AMC, Syfy, FX), news (MSNBC, CNN), or sports (NBA TV, NFL Network).

If you’re a soccer fan, however, it will appear tailor-made for you, with NBC and NBCSN for Premier League matches, 10 beIN SPORTS channels for La Liga and Ligue 1, FS1, FS2, UniMás, and Champions League action via TNT all on tap. If you can’t watch a match live, FuboTV offers a three-day replay for each match and 30 hours of cloud DVR. (Check out the complete FuboTV channels list.)

FuboTV also has bilingual families in mind; each subscription comes with UniMás, Galavisión, NBC Universo, beIN SPORTS, Univision, and Fox Deportes. An extra $7.99 per month will bring you Latino Plus, which includes CNN en Español and TyC Sports among its offerings.

2) Hulu with Live TV

• Cost: $54.99 per month
• Hulu devices: Roku, Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Amazon Fire Stick and Fire TV, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Nintendo Switch, and iOS and Android devices
• Hulu local channels: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, the CW (check your local availability here)

Hulu with Live TV includes sports programming among its broad spectrum of offerings, and as a subscriber to the service, you’ll get free access to Hulu’s sizable on-demand library. (Check out the full list of Hulu Live TV channels.)

3) Sling TV

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• Sling TV pricing: $30-$45 per month ($10 off first month)
• Sling TV devices: Amazon Fire Stick and Fire TV, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Xbox One, Google Chromecast, Oculus Go, Microsoft Edge, and iOS and Android devices
• Sling TV local channels: NBC, Fox (check your local availability here)

Sling TV provides two base channel package options, each priced at $30 per month. Sling Orange includes three ESPN channels, while Sling Blue includes sports channels like NBCSN (where many Premier League matches appear), NFL Network, and local channels. (Sling Blue customers in select markets get NBC, where some matches appear; see if yours has it here.) Sling Blue also brings Fox News Channel, MSNBC, and Headline News as part of its regular slate of channels, with Fox Business Channel available for those who get the Sling Blue News Extra add-on.

If you’re Team “Why Not Both,” Sling Orange + Blue combines the two for just $45 per month.

Other features include a Free Cloud DVR tier for all subscribers (allowing 10 hours of recording a month), the ability to record all live linear channels, and no VOD preemption on any channels. New subscribers get $10 off the first month.

To add beIN SPORTS and ESPN Deportes and maximize your soccer-watching potential, you’ll want to add either Sports Extra: Sling Orange ($5 per month) or Sports Extra: Sling Blue ($10 per month). (The latter also includes NFL RedZone.)

Spanish-speaking viewers have quite a few options. For bilingual families, you might consider the Español: Best of Spanish TV package for either Sling Orange or Sling Blue for 24/7 specialty channel LaLiga TV and beIN SPORTS Connect: Channels 4-9, which features matches from La Liga, Ligue 1 and Copa del Rey, among others. Both packages cost $5 per month after your free trial. Sling TV Latino is another Spanish-language package for $10 per month, including NBC Universo, History en Español, and—of import to soccer fans—four beIN SPORTS channels. (And choosing Best of Spanish + Sling Orange for $35 per month gives you access to ESPN Deportes.) For more information, check out our guide to Sling TV channels and our Sling TV review.

4) AT&T TV Now

• Cost: $65-$135 per month
• AT&T TV Now devices: Roku, Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Amazon Fire Stick and Fire TV, iOS and Android devices
• Local channels: NBC, CBS, Fox, ABC, the CW (enter your ZIP code here to check your availability)

AT&T TV Now is a bonus for AT&T wireless customers, especially for those who happen to be soccer fans. It provides instant access to more than 45 channels, including local channels. That means NBC as well as NBCSN for Premier League action, Fox as well as FS1 and FS2 for MLS, Bundesliga, the U.S. men’s and women’s teams, and even Liga MX offerings, and ESPN and ESPN2 for its array of soccer and other sports programming. It even offers free HBO on PLUS and MAX channel suites. Plus, it comes with CloudDVR for up to 20 hours of TV recording per month. One account works on two devices, but you can add more devices for only $5.

5) YouTube TV

• Cost: $50 per month
• YouTube TV devices: Google Chromecast, Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Xbox One, iOS and Android devices
• YouTube TV local channels: NBC, CBS, Fox, ABC, the CW (enter your ZIP code here to check your availability)

YouTube TV is a great option for soccer fans, including TNT for Champions League matches, NBC and NBCSN for Premier League matches, and broadcasting partnerships with three MLS teams. (Take a look at the full list of YouTube TV channels here.)

6) NBC Sports Gold

• Cost: $39.99 (for Matchday Pass option); $64.99 (for Premier League Pass option)
• NBC Sports Gold TV devices: Google Chromecast, Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, iOS and Android device.

If you want access to every Premier League game this season, you’ll want an NBC Sports Gold subscription. At the Matchday Pass tier, for $39.99, you get access to 140 exclusive live matches, with at least four for each of the 20 clubs. The Premier League Pass option gives you an option to replay matches, in case you can’t catch a match live, and offers additional programming, including analysis and highlights. NBC Sports Gold offers additional packages for fans who want to follow rugby action, the PGA tour, Indy Car racing, cycling, and lacrosse.

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