The best alternatives to Sky

There are many alternatives to Sky, but how good are they really? The pay-TV channel Sky scores in Germany with a wide range of football, sports and films. Not everyone is happy with it - we show you some alternatives to Sky for different tastes.

Alternatives to Sky for sports and soccer fans

Sky is particularly interesting for football fans. It is annoying, however, that the broadcaster conducts the Bundesliga and international competitions in two different packages, namely "Bundesliga" and "Sport". Die-hard followers of König Fußball must therefore subscribe to two different offers. Sky can afford it because there is hardly any competition.

• All games of the 1st and 2nd Bundesliga as well as the German teams in the Europa League can be heard in the live stream at Amazon Music Unlimited. You can also hear the DFB Cup and the Supercup there. Of course, the picture is missing here.
• Eurosport also shows many Bundesliga games in its Eurosport Player. Alternatively, you can also access the Eurosport Player via Amazon Video.
• Thanks to a cooperation with Eurosport, 40 Bundesliga games will now be broadcast live on the sports streaming service DAZN. However, this also goes hand in hand with a price increase. The monthly subscription will cost 11.99 euros from August 2019, instead of 9.99 euros as before. There will also be an annual subscription for 119.99 euros.
• Whole games or at least highlights can often be watched on the respective club television channels - but only after the final whistle. These club portals are often also subject to a fee.
• The situation is similar for other sports such as tennis or golf: from time to time, individual events can also be watched on free-to-air channels. A full range is only available in Germany from Sky.
• Unauthorized online streams are not a real alternative to Sky. Such live videos can be found in droves on the relevant websites. From a legal point of view, such streams are problematic - whether they are legal or illegal has not yet been conclusively clarified. Apart from that, many unofficial streams disappoint with poor quality: stutters, low resolutions and annoying advertisements are the order of the day. You also run the risk of catching malware.
• There is also the possibility to receive foreign channels in Germany. However, these are usually also subject to a fee, and you are also legally moving on shaky ground. Of course, you have to put up with a foreign-language comment and beware of additional costs and receiver problems.

• Amazon Video is an online video store from the world's largest internet retailer. Films and series can be borrowed or bought, the offer includes 25, 000 films and episodes. The Prime Video subscription service also includes 13, 000 films and episodes that can be streamed.
• Netflix is ​​a big name, but the German offering of the video streaming service lags significantly behind the US version. The provider is technically top and shows several successful in-house productions.
• Maxdome has been offering on-demand streaming since 2006. According to its own information, the offer includes over 60, 000 videos. that can be purchased individually or viewed on subscription.
• Watchever is still quite young, the offer only includes 12, 500 individual films and series episodes. But the monthly subscription price is quite cheap.
• In another practical tip, we compare the providers Maxdome, Watchever and Lovefilm with each other.

You can find out more about Sky Online's offer in another practical tip.