How to Avoid Spoilers When Watching Recorded Football Games on TV
Football fans have long wished for an easier way to avoid spoilers while watching games on TV. Whether through scores displayed in the bottom bar or comments by the announcers, it can be hard to get through a game without getting spoiled.
Australian television provider Fetch TV has developed a browser extension for Google Chrome and Firefox that blocks World Cup results by replacing text with the country colors of your choice.
MLS Season Pass
Unlike American football, which is still confined to cable and satellite TV channels, Major League Soccer has found a digital home in 2023 with the launch of MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. This service streams every live MLS regular-season match, the MLS Cup Playoffs and the in-season Leagues Cup tournament and includes studio shows, a live “whip-around” show, and other video content.
Currently, MLS Season Pass costs $13 a month or $79 for the season for subscribers to Apple TV Plus. This service is also available for non-Apple devices with the MLS app, but it isn’t compatible with Android or Amazon Fire devices.
The service is available internationally and offers a variety of viewing options, including the ability to watch Sunday night football on NBC in 4K resolution. Its most notable feature is the absence of regional blackout restrictions. Apple’s decision to stream MLS matches online is paying off, as the service has already seen an increase in new subscriptions since Lionel Messi joined Inter Miami CF from Paris Saint-Germain.
ESPN+
ESPN+ is a standalone streaming service that’s a great way to watch college football and basketball games, along with international NFL games and some Monday Night Football simulcasts. It’s available through the ESPN app and the website, and you can also access it on Roku, Apple devices like iPads and iPhones, Amazon Fire TV set-tops and Smart TVs, Chromecast, and gaming systems from PlayStation and Xbox.
The service has no display advertisements on live content, and the video streams at up to 60 frames per second. However, ESPN+ does feature some general sports news in the bottom corner of the screen during games and highlights. This may not spoil the game, but it can still be distracting. ESPN+ subscribers can also stream original shows and programs like the 30 for 30 documentary catalog, a series about Wayne Gretzky, and the Oscar-winning documentary OJ Simpson: Made in America. It also includes episodes of ESPN’s E:60 newsmagazine and the roundtable sports discussion program ESPN FC.
YouTube TV
When I was a kid, the interval between the end of a football game and its broadcast used to be fraught with suspense. We would leap to turn off radios before past scores were announced and cover our ears as nearby conversations turned to sports. In one especially memorable prank, a friend once printed out the final score and taped it to our front door. It wasn’t quite as effective as his other pranks, but it gave our family a good laugh.
YouTube TV is a cable replacement service that offers local channels and more than 85 other live TV channels, including NFL Sunday Ticket. Its clean interface is among the best available, and its unlimited cloud DVR storage space sets it apart from competitors like Sling TV.
YouTube TV’s base price is $73 per month, which puts it a little higher than competitors Hulu With Live TV ($70) and FuboTV ($75 before regional sports fees). However, YouTube TV’s improved integration with Android TV makes it a tempting option.
Amazon Prime Video
If you’re a fan of the NFL, you can watch all 16 Thursday Night Football games this season on Amazon Prime Video. The streaming service also has a number of other sports offerings, including MLB and NBA content. It also has an onsite studio show for TNF this season.
If your friends can’t help themselves from spoiling movies, shows, or video games before you have a chance to watch them, there are apps that can stop them. Twitter lets you mute certain words so they don’t show up in your timeline or notifications, and Instagram has a similar feature.
Australian TV provider Fetch TV has developed a web-browser plug in that helps World Cup fans avoid spoilers before they have a chance to watch the matches. The plugin scans sites and replaces any team names or other football World Cup related terms with green and gold colors. It works with both Google Chrome and Firefox.