The Formula 1 season is in full swing and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has been locked in a fierce battle with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. It’s been a rollercoaster ride of a season so far, but it’s far from over. With several races still to go, anything can happen in the 2022 Formula 1 season, so you want to ensure that you don’t miss out on any of the action for the rest of the year!
So far, you might have been scrambling to find live streams before the start of the race on Sundays. You may have noticed that the majority of live streams are not available in your region, and this is because of geo-blocking restrictions
These frustrating restrictions have left millions of internet users worldwide asking the question: “how do I watch Formula 1 online?” Luckily though, there is a way to overcome geo-blocking if you’re using the right tools. Thanks to modern technology in the form of VPN, we can experience true freedom on the Internet — keep reading to find out how!
Why Is It Difficult to Watch F1 Online?
You may have tried to live stream Formula 1 races in the past and you were likely left disappointed. If it’s not a low-quality stream that leaves you staring at different colors of blobs on the screen, then you’ve probably been blocked from accessing the live stream because you are not inside the correct region.
This is known as geo-blocking restrictions. If you frequently try to live stream sports, watch YouTube videos, or even try to access some movies or series on Netflix, you’ll be all too familiar with geo-blocking!
Geo-blocking might be incredibly frustrating for internet users, but unfortunately, it exists for good reason. The main reason why you would be blocked from accessing a sport live stream is that media companies such as Sky Sports need to pay millions of dollars to secure the broadcasting rights just to broadcast Formula 1 races.
Along with securing broadcasting rights, these companies need to follow a strict set of rules according to the contract that they have signed. One of these rules prevents them from broadcasting the races in different countries and regions.
The reason behind this rule is that Formula 1 needs to sell broadcasting rights to different companies to generate more money for the sport. If one company establishes a monopoly over broadcasting rights, there is a chance that many countries around the world won’t be able to broadcast the pinnacle of motorsport across their television screens and streaming platforms.
When you try to access a Sky Sports F1 stream from outside of the UK, you’ll likely be met with an error message stating: “this content is not available in your region”. The most frustrating part is that you’ll be shown this error message even if you’re a paying subscriber.
How To Bypass Geo-blocking
You might be wondering how a website can determine whether you are in an approved region or not. Websites will use your IP address to pinpoint your physical location. An IP address is simply a unique string of numbers that is used to identify your device on the internet. Websites will use your location to send you specific ads based on your location, such as your local bank or grocery store.
So, in theory, then, you can bypass geo-blocking restrictions by changing your IP address. While it might sound like a complex and difficult thing to do, it’s much easier than you think — you don’t need any technical skills or knowledge at all.
All you need to do is install a cybersecurity tool on your device — a virtual private network, also known as a VPN for short. VPNs are mainly used to protect your device when you’re using unsecured connections such as the public WiFi hotspots found at restaurants, hotels, and airports.
While your VPN is connected, your internet connection will be encrypted. This simply means that no one can see what you are doing on your device while you’re browsing the internet. Not even your internet service provider or the government can keep track of your internet traffic while you’re using a VPN, which makes it the ultimate tool for online privacy and security — just another advantage to having this tool installed on your device!
But the real reason we’re looking into VPNs is for another feature — the ability to change your device’s virtual location. VPNs allow you to connect to secure global servers in other countries and cities around the world Once your VPN is connected to a global server, your device will adopt the IP address of the server and mask your real IP address from websites that you are trying to access.
This will spoof your location and trick websites into believing that you are accessing them from elsewhere. For example, while you’re in Egypt, you can connect to a global server in the UK and access Sky Sports F1 live streams as if you were in the UK. You will also see the adverts on your browser change from Egyptian adverts to UK adverts — this is how you can tell that your VPN is working.
How To Choose a VPN
It’s not as simple as installing the first VPN you can find onto your device. You need to be careful in choosing a VPN to make sure that you get the best possible browsing and streaming experience. The golden rule that you always need to follow is to always install a premium VPN on your device and avoid any free VPNs — the same goes for any other cybersecurity tools you might need to install on your device.
Free VPNs come with a ton of drawbacks including; slower connection speeds, fewer global servers to choose from, less security, and more ads. They also have daily data limits that you need to stick to.
Choosing the right premium VPN is as simple as reading through different reviews and choosing the one that best suits your needs and preferences. If you’re planning on streaming Formula 1 races, you’re looking for fast and stable connection speeds as well as a multitude of secure global servers that you can take advantage of.