Watch AFC Championship online or live stream
The AFC championship promises to be one of the great football games of 2020 given the paths that the Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs took to get there.
For the Titans, the team has been described as a giant steamroller led by running back Derrick Henry. The Chiefs have plenty of their own momentum, especially after its come-from-behind win over the Houston Texans.
No matter which team you’re rooting for on Sunday, fuboTV and Hulu with Live TV are my top two picks for watching the AFC Championship without cable.
But there are a number of really solid options for watching the game for free. Here’s a quick look at all your options.
When is the AFC Championship game?
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 19
- Time: 3:05 P.M. ET
- Channel: CBS
- Live Stream: on fuboTV (with free 7-day trial).
Watch Titans vs Chiefs free with a TV antenna
The first option you should consider if you’re not too close to kickoff is using a TV antenna to get CBS.
Using an antenna gets you the AFC Championship and lots of other programming free for life. And your picture quality will be uncompressed HD.
A local cable company can’t even get picture quality that rivals digital signals captured by an antenna. That’s because cable providers have to compress those same signals to feed it through a cable cord into your home.
So do yourself a favor and get an antenna. These days, I’ve been using an ClearStream Eclipse
If you go the antenna route, chances are you will be all set to watch SuperBowl LIV on FOX.
There are two free online tools you can use, Antenna Web and TVFool, to find out if there’s a CBS broadcast tower near you.
Read my guide: How to Choose the Best TV Antenna & DVR for free tips on how to get over-the-air (OTA) channels. You might not live in an area where you can get antenna channels. If so, keep reading. There are plenty of other alternatives to cable to get a live stream of the game to your TV or iPhone.
Top pick: Watch AFC Championship online with fuboTV
fuboTV carries local CBS stations in 82 percent of U.S. households.
The company has expanded their NFL coverage in the last year and a half. And it became the first live TV streaming service to offer select sporting events in 4K HDR.
(There are no plans to stream the AFC game in 4K, but you will be able to watch Super Bowl LIV in 4K HDR10 if you subscribe.)
fuboTV has 100+ channels in its entry-level lineup, including CBS, FOX, NBC, CBS Sports Network, NFL Network, PAC-12 Network and Big Ten Network.
You can quickly look over what local channels and regional sports networks are in your area.
fubo also carries a bunch of entertainment channels such as A&E, History, Bravo, HGTV, Food Network and Travel Channel. So you’ll be able to watch popular shows like Live PD and House Hunters.
Subscribers get 30 hours of Cloud DVR space to record games, and you can also use the on-demand feature called “Lookback” to watch games that aired within the last 72 hours. A fuboTV subscription costs $54.99 per month.
fuboTV works on Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Android TV devices like NVIDIA Shield TV. You can watch the Titans face off against the Chiefs live from a PC or a mobile app for iPhone and Android smartphones.
Check out fuboTV free for 7 days so you can get a live stream of the game. If you don’t like the service, just cancel online before your trial ends.
Runner up: Live Stream AFC Championship on Hulu with Live TV
Hulu with Live TV carries the most local CBS stations across the U.S. Subscribers get 65+ live channels, 50 hours of Cloud DVR and unlimited access to Hulu’s on-demand library.
That’s the same library of movies, TV shows and Hulu Originals that people pay $5.99 per month for.
These two streaming services are bundled together for $54.99 per month.
Look over what local channels will be in your lineup before deciding whether you want to sign up. You can watch on up to two devices at once, including Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Apple TV. When you’re not at home, you can use iPhones and Android smart phones.
Hulu lets you sign in to 38 apps with its Live TV subscription. So you can use your subscription to login to apps for WatchESPN, A&E and CBS and CBS Sports on your Roku or Fire TV.
There’s no contracts or obligation to keep the service. Just cancel online if you don’t like it.
Budget option: CBS All Access: AFC Championship live stream
CBS All Access offers a live stream of CBS in 200 markets, and all of its shows on-demand the day after the live broadcast. A subscription costs $5.99 per month, and you can check out a free trial of their service.
CBS All Access is home to exclusive shows like the upcoming Star Trek Picard.
Subscribers can stream up two shows simultaneously on separate devices. CBS All Access let’s you try out its service free for a week.
Titans vs Chiefs live stream with AT&T TV Now
AT&T TV Now will let you watch a live stream of the AFC Championship no matter where you are. It’s really the best option if you are planning on watching the game on your smartphone.
CBS is available across all channel bundles offered by AT&T TV Now.
The Plus bundle is your cheapest option. It carries 45+ channels, including HBO, ESPN and FOX for $65 per month. AT&T TV Now has apps for iOS, Android, Amazon Fire TV and Apple TV. It’s not currently being supported by Roku.
AT&T TV Now offers a free 7-day trial for new customers.
YouTube TV: Watch AFC Championship live online
YouTube TV made it a priority to include local channels when it began expanding its coverage across the U.S. So chances are you’ll be able to find a CBS live stream in many markets.
You will get 75+ channels for $50 per month.
YouTube TV now has apps for pretty much every device, including Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Smart TVs supported by Android TV software. NVIDIA Shield TV also got its own app. YouTube TV has a free 7-day trial.
Is the AFC Championship game on Sling TV?
No. According to Cablefax, CBS continues to be very selective about which streaming platforms the company partners with. Sling TV has no agreement to bring CBS to its platform anytime soon, so you’ll have to go elsewhere to watch the AFC Championship.
What’s the best way to watch the AFC Championship?
If you’re not buying an antenna to watch the game, I would go with fuboTV as your first option. You’ll get CBS, CBS Sports Network, NFL Network, Big Ten Network, PAC 12 Network, FS1 and FS2 as part of an 100+ channel bundle.
You’ll be able to use Cloud DVR to watch the game later or catch up on other sports using the “Lookback” option.
Try fuboTV free for a week. And if you need a streaming service for the Super Bowl, you use fuboTV to live stream the game in 4K (assuming you have a 4K television).
If fubo isn’t for you, then Hulu with Live TV is a solid pick as well because you’re getting 60+ live channels, 50 hours of Cloud DVR and the on-demand library that people pay $5.99 per month for. Look over the channel lineup before deciding whether you want to sign up.
How are you going to watch the Chiefs and Titans on Sunday? Tell fellow readers in the comments below.
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