Cristiano Ronaldo Headed to Manchester United: What That Means for Streaming Fans
(Updated 8/27) News moves fast these days, doesn’t it? After Manchester City pulled out of negotiations earlier today, Manchester United swooped in and grabbed Cristiano Ronaldo from Juventus, bringing him back to the club he spent 6 years with between 2003-2009. We’ve updated the article accordingly, showing you where you can watch Ronaldo at his new, old, club — Manchester United.
Manchester United agree Cristiano Ronaldo transfer fee with Juventus | @samuelluckhurst #mufc https://t.co/zdqhVu7Rsi
— Man United News (@ManUtdMEN) August 27, 2021
Regardless, this means that Ronaldo will still head to the Premier League and his fans will need to get their hands on NBC-affiliated programming, including Peacock to watch his matches live.
How to Watch the Premier League Without Cable
NBC owns the American broadcasting rights to the Premier League and will air matches on NBC, NBCSN, CNBC, and Peacock. If you’re looking for a live TV streaming service to watch the matches, we recommend fuboTV, since you will get NBC, NBCSN, CNBC, and Telemundo. This means you’ll get the widest coverage of all nationally televised EPL games in the U.S. Besides Premier League, you’ll also get coverage of Messi in Ligue 1 (on beIn) and Primeira Liga (on GolTV). However, you have plenty of options based on your channel needs outside of sports.
| AT&T TV | Fubo | Hulu | Peacock | Sling TV | YouTube | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sign Up | Free Trial | Sign Up | Sign Up | Get 50% Off | Sign Up | |||
| $69.99 | $91.99 | $76.99 | $5.99 | $40 | $40 | $72.99 | ||
| Peacock | - | - | - | ✓ | - | - | - | |
| NBC Sports Network | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | - | - | ✓ | ✓ | |
| NBC | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | + $6 | - | ✓ | ✓ | |
| CNBC | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | - | - | + $6 | ✓ | |
| Universo | + $25 | + $10 | + $5 | - | - | + $6 | ✓ | |
| Telemundo | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | - | - | - | ✓ | |
You can learn more about how to watch the Premier League without cable here and we also have a full guide on how to watch Manchester United matches live without cable here.
Background
Ronaldo has been the source of many rights-related battles in recent memory. When Ronaldo left Real Madrid to join Juventus, ESPN quickly agreed to a three-year deal with Serie A to broadcast their matches. That deal ends at the end of the 2020-21 season, as ViacomCBS & Paramount+ will now be the home for Serie A over the next three years. However, ViacomCBS likely thought they were getting Ronaldo in the deal — and now they’re left empty-handed.
Ronaldo’s contemporary, Lionel Messi, recently made a move of his own, leaving his longtime home at La Liga’s Barcelona to move to Ligue 1’s Paris Saint-Germain. With Messi’s move to Ligue 1, a whole lot of soccer fans now want beIN Sports as part of their cable packages, as they’re the only place in the US to watch the French league.
Ronaldo played 6 years for Manchester United, signing with the club as an 18-year-old after a short stint playing pro ball in Portugal. During his time with Man U, Ronaldo scored 84 goals, including a brilliant 31 goal-campaign in 2007-08, capped off by a Premier League title and a Champions League win. Man United supporters certainly hope Ronaldo brings them back to the promised land. Go Reds.