If you’re trying to listen to certain sporting events on BBC Sounds, outside the UK, they might not work.
The reason for this is because customers outside the UK are sometimes geo-blocked by the BBC depending on where it has the rights to broadcast the sporting event.
While you don’t need a VPN to listen to the majority of the stations or programmes on BBC Sounds, sometimes the BBC doesn’t have the rights to broadcast certain events outside the UK.
Fortunately, a reliable VPN will allow you to listen to any sporting event on BBC Sounds, anywhere in the world.
See also:
- How to watch BBC iPlayer abroad: The EASY 2-minute method! (2023)
- BBC iPlayer not working with VPN: Here’s how I FIXED that! (2023)
BBC Sounds not working abroad: Quick Fix
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Sign up to ExpressVPN (£5.13/month)
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Connect to a server in the UK
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Open BBC Sounds app or website
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Listen to BBC Sounds from anywhere in the world!
Why can’t I listen to BBC Sounds abroad?
You can listen to the vast majority of BBC Sounds while abroad, however it gets a bit trickier if you’re trying to listen to a live sporting event.
If you’re trying to listen to a sporting event outside the UK and it’s not working, BBC Sounds has blocked your connection.
It does this because it doesn’t have the rights to broadcast that particular event outside the UK. Because of this, it blocks anyone overseas from listening to it.
If it didn’t do this, the BBC would be breaching the copyright and licensing agreements it has with its content partners and would face severe financial punishment.
The BBC doesn’t want this to happen, so it blocks anyone outside the UK from listening to broadcast restricted events.
How does the BBC block my connection?
This is all to do with your IP address.
An IP is a unique code allocated to your device to form a communication link between your device and the website or app you’re visiting, in this case BBC Sounds.
The problem with this is in order for the communication to work, your IP address contains information regarding your location.
The BBC scans every IP address that connects to BBC Sounds to find this location information. If it finds you’re outside the UK, it blocks the connection.
How can I get around the BBC’s location blocks?
The way to get around the BBC’s location-based IP blocks is to change the location of your IP address.
The easiest way to do that is with a reliable VPN. We recommend ExpressVPN ($6.67/month).
ExpressVPN ($6.67/month) is very easy to use and most importantly it works reliably with BBC Sounds.
All you have to do is open ExpressVPN ($6.67/month), select a UK server and your IP address will now look like it’s in the UK.
Now when you connect to BBC Sounds, it will scan your IP, think you’re in the UK and you’ll be able to listen to any sporting events, anywhere in the world. It’s that easy.
The best VPNs to listen to BBC Sound outside the UK
1. ExpressVPN 🥇
Why You Should Use ExpressVPN? It’s the fastest and MOST reliable VPN of 2023
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
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Number of servers: 3,000+ | Speed: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 160 in 94 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $6.66/month for 15 months
- $9.99/month for 6 months
- $12.95/month for 1 month
ExpressVPN ($6.66/month) is still the best VPN. And importantly, it ALWAYS has servers that are open with major streaming sites such as Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, etc.
ExpressVPN is usually very good at playing Cat and Mouse with online streaming sites. Meaning, whenever one of its servers is blacklisted it creates a new one – giving its users a constant stream of servers that aren’t blocked. Needless to say, this is a valuable attribute if you’re looking for a VPN to unblock streaming sites.
Its app is easy-to-use and free to download on pretty much any device you can think of. Mac, Windows, iOS, Android, FireStick, Android TV, Roku, PS4, Xbox, Linux, even Apple TV (with a workaround). It’s got it all covered.
The app is another main reason this VPN is so good at unblocking TV streaming sites (that claim they block VPNs) is that its software takes a pragmatic approach to user management. While other VPNs tempt customers by promising them access to hundreds/thousands of servers in multiple countries, ExpressVPN does things differently.
With ExpressVPN you only have a handful of server locations to choose from. Once you select your location the app takes care of the rest. Assigning you to the fastest available server that’s not oversubscribed. This simple technique is so important, as it keeps ExpressVPN’s servers operating at lightning-fast speeds and prevents its IPs from getting blacklisted for “abnormal” usage in the first place.
Check out our full ExpressVPN review.
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2. NordVPN 🥈
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ No logs
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 6-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ No refunds for purchases from iTunes/App store
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Number of servers: 5,000+ | Speeds: >80% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 62 countries | Devices supported: 6 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $3.49/month for 2 years
- $6.99/month for 1 year
- $11.95/month for 1 month
NordVPN is the most widely-used VPN in the world. And it’s easy to see why. It’s a polished app that delivers fast connections (more on this later) to a massive network of VPN servers.
It’s the most reliable at unblocking popular streaming services too – US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, BBC iPlayer, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. This is because NordVPN hired a full-time technical team (that’s responsible for monitoring its servers’ connections with popular TV streaming services) and has been aggressively investing in its network of IP addresses in key locations.
Another interesting thing to note is that NordVPN is an industry leader in its development of Nordlynx technology. Nordlynx is built using the WireGuard, a new VPN tunneling protocol designed to outperform current standards (OpenVPN and IPSec). The benefits, according to NordVPN, are dramatically faster transfer speeds while connected to a VPN. My tests – New Zealand to London – confirm that Nordlynx is currently the fastest VPN on the market. However, the difference isn’t dramatic, a few Mbps is all.
Read our NordVPN review.
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3. Private Internet Access
The BEST low-cost VPN for streaming!
Pros
- ✅ Fast and reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 10-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- ❌ Only 48 server locations
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Number of servers: 25,000+ | Speed: >75% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 70 in 74 countries | Devices supported: 10 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $2.03/month for 3 years
- $7.50/month for 6 months
- $11.99/month for 1 month
Private Internet Access is one of the leading no-log VPN services with over 1-million paying customers.
This VPN is one of the best in the industry at beating streaming sites’ VPN bans. It provides reliable connections with US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney+ Amazon Prime Video, etc. It also allows 10 simultaneous devices to be connected to its servers at the same time, so you can share the account with your close friends.
If – for whatever reason – you’re not happy with Private Internet Access, there’s a 24/7 live chat support available to assist you with your problem. PIA also offers the industry-standard 30-day money-back guarantee.
From my tests (from New Zealand) I was able to get download speeds of 70 Mbps while connected to a UK server using the Private Internet Access VPN (my non-VPN speed is 100 Mbps).
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4. Ivacy
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ Fast servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ Dedicated streaming servers
- ✅ 5-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ 24/7 Live Chat
Cons
- ❌ Only 5 devices
- ❌ Sometimes runs slow
- ❌ Occasionally block by streaming sites for several days
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Number of servers: 1,000+ | Speed: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 275 in 100 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $1.16/month for 5 years
- $3.50/month for 1 year
- $9.99/month for 1 month
If you’re looking for an excellent VPN, with an even better price tag, Ivacy ($1.16/month) is a great option.
This VPN has all the features you need to stream BBC iPlayer, in HD, from any country in the world. I’ve been testing the app recently on Mac, PC, Android, iOS and FireStick and the results have been impressive – unlocking BBC iPlayer, US Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video, etc. with ease.
The Ivacy app is a little different in regards to its UX (user experience). Instead of just selecting a UK server, you need to select the specific BBC iPlayer server. Don’t worry, this isn’t a bad thing – by connecting to a dedicated BBC iPlayer server, it simply means that you’re connecting to an IP address that Ivacy knows works with BBC iPlayer.
For an extra $1.99/month (£1.74) you can add-on a dedicated IP. This will buy you sole access to an IP address in a country of your choice, meaning you won’t have to share your IP (and speeds) with any other use. I don’t recommend this though, using the regular Ivacy servers is enough 95 per cent of the time.
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5. CyberGhost
A very quick and trustworthy VPN
Pros
- ✅ 1-day free trial
- ✅ Reliable servers
- ✅ Thousands of IP addresses
- ✅ 7-simultaneous connections
- ✅ 30-day money-back guarantee
- ✅ Easy-to-use app
Cons
- ❌ Expensive
- ❌ Average speed scores
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Number of servers: 1,000+ | Speed: >65% | Bandwidth: Unlimited | IP locations: 275 in 100 countries | Devices supported: 5 | Live chat: Yes | 30-day money-back guarantee: Yes
- $2.75/month for 3 years
- $3.69/month for 2 years
- $5.99/month for 1 year
- $12.99/month for 1 month
CyberGhost is one of the more established VPNs on the market. It has a well-established, and well-tested global network of servers that perform well.
From my tests over the past several months, CyberGhost has no trouble at unblocking major streaming services – US Netflix, BBC iPlayer, Hulu, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max etc. This VPN performed well at maintaining download speeds, well above 65 per cent of my regular (non VPN) ISP speed.
That said, there’s nothing really unique about the service. Which forces you to look at its price-point. And there’s nothing special here. Its short-term $12.99/month price tag puts is well above the industry average of $10.10/month. Similarly, its long-term $2.75/month for 3 years deal isn’t much of a “deal” either.
Oddly, CyberGhost’s most unique feature is its a 1-day, no obligations, free trial. This is an appealing offer to customers who are new to VPNs. However, it’s important to remember that most reputable VPNs will offer customers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so try not to be too seduced by the offer.
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BBC Sounds not working with VPN? [Explained]
BBC Radio is free for the whole world to listen to. This oddity predates internet radio to a time when the BBC was committed to using radio as a tool to share British culture, and its views, with the world.
The result of this commitment, in modern times, means UK travellers only need an internet connection and a smartphone/tablet/computer to listen to BBC Radio stations via the BBC Sounds app.
Most of the time…
If you want to listen to a BBC Sounds station that’s broadcasting certain sports commentaries – such as TMS or EPL 3PM kick-offs – you won’t be able to listen from outside the UK.
Why? “Licensing reasons”. As you’re probably aware, the TV rights for broadcasting live English Premier League Football is worth billions of pounds. And while the radio broadcasting rights are not in the same league (clumsy pun intended) they’re still a valuable asset – meaning the Beeb has to geo-restrict its broadcasts to within the UK to avoid breaching its broadcast license from the EPL.
Up until recently, there was a simple way around this. Any cheap VPN that gave you access to a UK IP address would let you access the BBC abroad. Not any more. Nowadays, there are only a handful of VPNs that work with BBC. That’s because the BBC now actively blocks VPNs from working with iPlayer – meaning that you need to use a VPN that, in turn, know how to beat iPlayer’s ban.
In short, it’s a complicated game of Cat and Mouse between the VPNs and BBC iPlayer not. If you have a few minutes, take a look at my article on How to listen to BBC Radio abroad for a more in-depth explanation about how VPN’s are able to beat iPlayer’s blacklists.
