Full details about Sky Sports on all providers can be found below but there is a great offer on at the moment that you won’t find on the Top Up TV site without this link. It’s for 2 months free Sky Sports 1 and ESPN when you buy a Top Up TV Freeview box for £49.99 plus £20 connection. There’s no contract, just 30 days notice, so you can keep the sports channels for as long as you like. Click on the banner on the left to go to the deal on their site – it leads stright to the basket but no obligation! Back to the original post after that newsflash…
Looking for Sky Sports on Freeview? If you want to receive it through your aerial as normal for no charge then you’re out of luck as this is not possible, however there are several ways to get Sky Sports and it is possible to get it without committing to a long contract if you live in an area where Top Up TV is available. This is a Freeview-based service that uses a Top Up TV Freeview Plus box to record, pause and rewind the Freeview channels available to you and allows you to add on Sky Sports and ESPN as extra channels for a monthly fee.
Below are the details of the different ways you can get Sky Sports or if you’d prefer to talk to someone you can call our advice line as shown on the right – 0800 280 0879. You may find that one of the main providers such as Virgin, BT or Sky themselves can give you better value.
Here are the key points about Sky Sports on Freeview from Top Up TV;
- > Initial cost is £49.99 – £29.99 for the basic Top Up Freeview box and £20 set-up fee
- > Sky Sports 1 with no contract then £24.99 a month
- > Total for 1 year, Sky Sports 1 only, £349.87
This is how it compares to a contract with Sky for the cheapest standard definition package with Sky Sports 1;
- > Initial cost is £30 set-up fee – Usually free with a triple bundle
- > Sky Sports 1 added to the Sky+ Starter package makes it £32.50 a month
- > Sky line rental £12.25 a month
- > Total for 1 year, Sky Sports 1 only, £537 (but you’re getting broadband, Sky+ recording and landline phone in with that)
This is the Virgin Media deal for the cheapest standard definition package with Sky Sports 1;
- > No initial cost
- > Sky Sports 1 added to the M+ Starter package makes it £24.50 a month for the 1st 6 months then £34.50 a month
- > Virgin line rental £13.90 a month
- > Total for 1 year, Sky Sports 1 only, £520.80
BT Vision also offer a package with Sky Sports 1;
- > Initial cost £40 (free Vision+ box, £30 one-off activation and £10 for a viewing card)
- > Sky Sports 1 added to the TV Essential + Broadband and Anytime Calls package makes it £32.30 a month
- > Total for 1 year, Sky Sports 1 only, £427.60
Since August 2010 Top Up TV have been offering Sky Sports 1 & Sky Sports 2 to over 10 million Freeview homes in the UK – if you want Sky Sports on Freeview, that is you don’t want any long contracts, it is the cheapest option. How does it work?
You buy a basic Top Up TV box for £29.99, depending on how much storage you want, pay a £20 connection fee and then your fee for Sky Sports 1 is £23.99 a month – there are no other monthly charges – which is the cheapest way to get it without broadband and phone bundled in. See below for the cheapest Sky and Virgin deals.
This is quite a coup for the sports fans out there who don’t want to subscribe to Sky, Virgin and BT as Sky Sports 1 & 2 combined with ESPN will give you live access to 2010/11 Barclays Premier League games and Champions League matches previously only available on satellite and cable, plus a vast array of other sports. It’s also the first time customers are able to get Sky Sports without taking any bundled services like broadband and phone, and is the lowest stand-alone price for sport in the UK, with Sky Sports 1 available for just £19.99 a month, Sky Sports 1 & 2 for £29.99 a month and Sky Sports 1 and ESPN, for £29.98 a month.
Click here to go straight to the Top Up TV site.
As one of our readers has commented below it’s all very well looking for Sky Sports on Freeview if you really don’t want to commit to a contract but if a contract isn’t such a no-no then you’ll get a lot better value going with Sky or Virgin. If you want to compare the basic Sky+ with Sky Sports package against the Virgin Sky Sports package click on one of the banners below…
Top Up TV launched its new sports packs on Monday 2 August 2010.
I’m told that Sky Sports 1 & 2 are available on BT Vision, via Freeview. It also says ESPN is available. When I checked, it said I was unable to get them. I receive signals from Waltham and Sandy Heath, which also says they are not available.
1… When is it planned for these transmitters to transmit these channels?
2… I also have Freesat dish with HD receiver. Is it / will it be possible to receive them on this?
I find this all very misleading and would appreciate your assistance to explain.
Many thanks, John.
it’s still cheaper with sky mate (unfortunately) the prices on freeview are too expensive and on bt you only get half (of the sports) you would get by subscribing to sky for 75% of the cost.
I got an LG tv with freeview HD built in and it has the sky sports channels on there. Is it possible to activate these channels without buying a top up tv box.
As far as we’re aware there’s no way to get the Sky Sports and ESPN channels free. The fact that they are showing as available on your TV tells you that if you wanted to get them via BT Vision or Top Up TV you can, but they need to be paid for – sorry!
Like Rory i to have an LG tv with built in freeview, there is also a PCMCiA card slot built in. Can i just buy a top up tv card and use this slot.
Hi Gary,
If you wanted just ESPN for £9.99 a month you could get a CAM (continuous access module) from Top Up TV – click here for details – but when it comes to their Sky Sports deals you need a Top Up TV box.
I wouldn’t bother with any setup frankly. They’re all expensive in the long run and no doubt Sky will move the footy to Sky Sports 3 or 4 or whatever, thereby rendering your equipment useless. Take my advice – it’s cheaper and more fun in the pub!!
I love the pub myself but some prefer the comfort of their own home!