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After an exciting photo finish at this year's Kentucky Derby, the next race in the famous Triple Crown series gets underway today, but will Mystic Dan pick up a second win? You won't want to miss this one, and we can show you how to watch the Preakness Stakes live stream for free, no matter what country you're in right now.
The main event is set for 6:50 p.m. ET, but coverage across various channels worldwide begins hours before, so settle in for hours of live horse racing fun today ahead of the main Preakness Stakes sprint, which is only 1 3/16 miles long.
In the US, you'll find the main Preakness Stakes race on live TV via NBC (earlier footage pre-4:30 p.m. is on CNBC). If you don't have access, you'll find it on the affordable Peaco*ck streaming service. Better yet, we've found a free streaming option via an Irish TV channel that you can stream online from anywhere if you have a VPN (we'll explain how to use one further down the page if you need help).
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How to watch the Preakness Stakes in the US
Preakness Stakes coverage falls under the NBCUniversal umbrella in the US. From 12 p.m. ET to 2:30 p.m. ET, coverage aired on USA Network and Peaco*ck. From 2:30 p.m. ET to 7:30 p.m. ET, coverage airs on NBC and Peaco*ck.
There are several races at Churchill Downs throughout the day, but the main Preakness Stakes event is scheduled for 6:57 p.m. ET and lasts about two minutes. For cord-cutters, you can live stream all of the action through Peaco*ck. Subscriptions start at $5.99 a month.
How to watch the Preakness Stakes in the UK
The Preakness Stakes will air on Sky Sports in the UK. For British cord-cutters, you can stream this action through a Now TV account. Now Sports' one-off day memberships start at £14.99. The actual race is expected to start at 11:50 p.m. BST.
How to watch the Preakness Stakes in Ireland
In Ireland, the Preakness Stakes will stream through Virgin Media 2. This is a free streaming option that requires no account creation, so viewers just need to navigate to the live TV portion of the website at race time. While the race starts quite late (11:50 p.m. BST), coverage starts at 9:30 p.m.
How to watch the Preakness Stakes free from anywhere
If you're outside of Ireland at race time but are still hoping to access the free Preakness Stakes live stream, you can use a VPN (virtual private network). VPNs are easy ways to temporarily alter your device's virtual location to access websites and apps that vary in availability from region to region. They're popular among those seeking increased internet privacy and access to their websites while traveling away from home.
If you're interested in trying out a VPN, our go-to is ExpressVPN, a beginner-friendly option with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Check out our ExpressVPN review for more information, and keep reading to learn how to use it.
How to watch the Preakness Stakes with a VPN
- Sign up for a VPN if you don't have one.
- Install it on the device you're using to watch the race.
- Set the location to Ireland.
- Go toVirgin Media 2.
- Enjoy the Preakness Stakes.
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.
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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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Lillian Brown is a Streaming and Deals Editorial Fellow for Business Insider. She joined the company in early 2024 and focuses on 'how to watch' guides for streaming services and live events for the Reviews team. She also covers VPN usage.Her entertainment writing has appeared in a variety of publications, including Vulture, TV Guide, Time, Esquire, and The Daily Beast, among others. She specializes in writing about film and television. Previously, she worked in the Living/Arts department of The Boston Globe.When not teaching people how to stream the best live sports and TV shows, Lillian can be found long-distance running, watching the latest season of For All Mankind, or playing through The Last of Us Part II on her PS4 yet again.
