The 2019 IIHF World Championship kicks off on May 10, and to say fans are excited would be an understatement. For those who will be watching at home, you can follow the IIHF official YouTube channel for free. Unfortunately though, streaming in some countries may be subject to geo-blocks.
But why should some people resort to illegal streaming while others get to have all the fun? In this article, we will show you how to stream the 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship using a VPN, so that you don’t miss a thing.
Channels Streaming 2019 IIHF World Championship
IIHF’s YouTube channel isn’t the only service airing the event. The list below features the channels that will broadcast the tournament.
- NHL Network (USA)
- TSN, RDS (Canada)
- Ceske Televize (Czech Republic)
- SVT, TV 4 (Sweden)
- TV2 (Denmark)
- NTV Plus (Russia)
- Eurosport (Europe)
How to Watch IHHF World Championship Anywhere with VPN
Despite the various broadcasting channels, your best option has to be IIHF’s official YouTube channel because it will show the matches for free. However, it may be geo-blocked in certain countries like the US, UK, Sweden, Denmark, and France due to copyright reasons. But with a VPN, you should be able to bypass any restrictions easily.
A VPN, or virtual private network, is a software that redirects your internet connection to another server of your choice. It can spoof your physical location by hiding your IP address and replacing it with a dfferent one from any region you’d like. Therefore, IIHF’s YouTube channel will think that you are within the coverage area, and give you access to any match you’d like.
To get a VPN, all you need to do is:
- Create an account with a VPN provider. We recommend ExpressVPN.
- Download and install the app on your PC, Mac, iOS, or Android device.
- Sign in and connect to a server in a region where IIHF’s channel is available like Germany, Australia, Japan, Spain or other countries.
- Double check your new IP address on WhatIsMyIP.network.
- Watch the tournament for free
Best VPNs to Stream 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship
As I mentioned before, ExpressVPN comes highly-recommended. It is second to none when it comes to bypassing geo-restrictions, largely due to its large network of servers. The company has over 1,000 servers spread across 160 locations worldwide.
Moreover, ExpressVPN offers security features that are basically unmatched in the VPN industry. A military-grade AES 256-bit encryption, split tunneling, DNS leak protection, and a kill switch, guarantee effective content protection.
Furthermore, the VPN service is compatible with pretty much every device, platform, or operating system. It has apps for Windows, Mac, Android, Linux, and iOS, with additional compatibility with routers, consoles, smart TVs, and gaming consoles.
But these aren’t the only features ExpressVPN has to offer. If you want a full review of the brand, check out ExpressVPN Review 2019.
You could also try using the below providers. They are very well-ranked, and very trustworthy.
- 30-Day Money-back Guarantee
- Unlimited Bandwidth
- Apps For All Your Devices
- 24/7 Live Support
About 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship
The 2019 IIHF World Championship kicks off on May 10 and concludes on the 26th of the same month. Slovakia will host the tournament for the second time as an independent country. Just like in 2011, the host cities will be Bratislava and Košice.
16 teams will participate in the 2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, 14 of which automatically qualified after earning a top placement at the 2018 IIHF World Championship. The two remaining nations (Italy and Great Britain) qualified after winning a promotion.
Group A (KOŠICE)
- Canada (1)
- United States (4)
- Finland (5)
- Germany (8)
- Slovakia (10)
- Denmark (12)
- France (13)
- Great Britain (22)
Group B (Bratislava)
- Sweden (2)
- Russia (3)
- Czech Republic (6)
- Switzerland (7)
- Norway (9)
- Latvia (11)
- Austria (17)
- Italy (19)
Fixtures
The first phase of the tournament will conclude on May 21, as eight teams advance to the quarter finals. The latter will be played on May 23, followed by the semi-finals (may 25), and the final (May 26).
May 10
- Finland vs. Canada
- United States vs. Slovakia
- Russia vs. Norway
- Czech Republic vs. Sweden
May 11
- Denmark vs. France
- Germany vs. Great Britain
- Slovakia vs. Finland
- Switzerland vs. Italy
- Latvia vs. Austria
- Norway vs. Czech Republic
May 12
- United States vs. France
- Denmark vs. Germany
- Great Britain vs. Canada
- Russia vs. Austria
- Italy vs. Sweden
- Latvia vs. Switzerland
May 13
- United States vs. Finland
- Slovakia vs. Canada
- Russia vs. Czech Republic
- Norway vs. Sweden
May 14
- Great Britain vs. Denmark
- Germany vs. France
- Italy vs. Latvia
- Switzerland vs. Austria
May 15
- United States vs. Great Britain
- Germany vs. Slovakia
- Switzerland vs. Norway
- Russia vs. Italy
May 16
- Canada vs. France
- Finland vs. Denmark
- Sweden vs. Austria
- Czech Republic vs. Latvia
May 17
- France vs. Slovakia
- Finland vs. Great Britain
- Austria vs. Norway
- Czech Republic vs. Italy
May 18
- Denmark vs. United States
- Canada vs. Germany
- Great Britain vs. Slovakia
- Latvia vs. Russia
- Italy vs. Norway
- Sweden vs. Switzerland
May 19
- Germany vs. United States
- France vs. Finland
- Austria vs. Czech Republic
- Switzerland vs. Russia
May 20
- France vs. Great Britain
- Canada vs. Denmark
- Sweden vs. Latvia
- Austria vs. Italy
May 21
- Finland vs. Germany
- Slovakia vs. Denmark
- Canada vs. United States
- Czech Republic vs. Switzerland
- Norway vs. Latvia
- Sweden vs. Russia
2019 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Favorites
Each one of the participating teams has a chance to claim the 2019 IIHF World Championship title. But there are of course tournament favorites like top-ranked Canada, defending champions Sweden, and 2018 runners-up Switzerland.
Other nations tipped for the title include Germany (Olympic silver medalists), and the USA (2018 Bronze medalist).
How to Stream 2019 IIHF World Championship Anywhere – Conclusion
The 2019 IIHF World Championship is shaping up to be quite the event. With so many top teams participating, who knows which nation will take home the gold medal. If you wish to find out, all you have to do is get a VPN, unblock the IIHF official YouTube channel, and watch every game for free.