The 2026 Indy 500 will take place on Sunday, May 24 at 12:45 PM ET (9:45 AM PT / 5:45 PM BST). It sees 33 of the world’s best IndyCar drivers competing in a gruelling 500-mile race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This event usually lasts about three hours, and below I’ll let you know how to watch every minute of the 2026 Indy 500 online and free-of-charge.
You should note that I’ll only be recommending official sources. Although major sporting events are often available on unlicensed streaming sites, I don’t recommend using these. Not only is the video quality very poor, there’s also a chance that the stream will be taken offline partway through for copyright violation. With so many legitimate ways to watch this event, there’s no reason to use unofficial sources.
All of the platforms showing this race are region-locked. As such, you’ll need a VPN in order to watch it on your home streaming service while traveling abroad.
How to live stream the 2026 Indy 500 abroad with a VPN
VPNs might seem a little intimidating at first, but they actually make it very easy to access geo-restricted platforms abroad. Just follow the steps I’ve laid out below to watch this race anywhere:
- Start by signing up for a suitable VPN. I recommend NordVPN, although Surfshark and IPVanish are both high-quality, low-cost alternatives.
- Next, download and install the appropriate version of the VPN app for your device.
- Choose one of the official sources from the list below.
- Connect to a VPN server in the appropriate country. For instance, you’d need a US server to unblock NBC or a Canadian server for TSN.
- Play a video on your chosen platform. It should load instantly but if not, you can solve most issues by clearing your browser’s cache and cookies, then refreshing the page.
This race will air live, so I recommend testing your VPN with the steps above well before it’s due to start. This approach ensures that if anything doesn’t work as expected, you’ll still have plenty of time to contact your VPN’s customer support team for help.
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How to watch the IndyCar Indy 500 live online
IndyCar might have a predominantly American audience, but it has fans all over the world. Below, I’ll let you know which broadcasters are showing the 2026 Indy 500 in your country:
USA
Fox is the exclusive US TV home for watching the 2026 Indy 500 live. This service allows you to login and stream the full event for free if your cable TV subscription includes Fox. Don’t have cable? No problem – all of the services below allow you to stream Fox live:
- Fubo – Sports + News plan includes Fox and costs $55.99/month. Just $45.99 for your first month after a free trial (typically 5 days)
- Hulu – $89.99/month and includes Disney+, ESPN, and a 3-day free trial
- Sling TV – Plans start from $19.99/month (Select) and go up to $60.99 for the Orange & Blue plan bundle
- YouTube TV – $82.99/month but just $67.99/month for your first three months following a 10-day free trial
These services are fairly expensive but, with the exception of Sling TV, they all include a free trial period. As such, you can sign up, stream the event live, then cancel to avoid being charged.
The services above can only be accessed within the US. To use them from other countries, you’ll need a VPN. If you don’t have one, I recommend taking advantage of NordVPN’s risk-free 30-day money-back-guarantee. If you only required a VPN to watch this event, or if NordVPN doesn’t meet your expectations, you can just cancel and claim a full refund.
UK
- Sky Sports (cable subscription required)
- Now TV
Every 2026 IndyCar race, practise, and qualifier will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1. If you’re already a Sky TV customer, you can sign into the Sky Go app or Sky website and stream the full race live. If you don’t have cable, or if you’re with a different provider, your best bet is to purchase a Sky Sports pass on Now TV instead. Daily passes cost £14.99 while one month is priced at £31.99.
Sky Go and Now TV are both region-locked. This means that you’ll have to either be in the UK or using a British VPN server to use them.
Canada
TSN has exclusive rights to show this event in Canada. You can sign in with your cable provider details and stream the race for free as long as TSN is included in your subscription.
This broadcaster also offers an online-only service called TSN+, so you’ll be able to watch even if you don’t have cable TV. Unfortunately, this service doesn’t come with a free trial. A monthly subscription costs CAD $8 per month.
TSN is only available in Canada and requires a payment method that’s linked to a Canadian address. Existing subscribers can still use this service from abroad by connecting to a VPN, however.
Australia
Australian fans can watch this event live on Stan with the Stan Sport add-on. There are three subscription tiers available: Basic (AUS $12/month), Standard ($17/month), and Premium ($22). However, Stan Sport costs an additional $20 a month on top of this.
Stan uses geo-restriction to prevent users from outside of Australia from watching anything. Existing subscribers can access Stan from abroad with a VPN and Australian IP address, though.
Sub-Saharan Africa
- Canal+ (subscription required, French-language coverage)
- SuperSport (subscription required)
Canal+ will provide French-language coverage of the 2026 IndyCar season to Sub-Saharan African countries including Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, and South Africa. SuperSport will be showing the race in the same countries, albeit with English commentary.
It’s worth mentioning that both of these services require hardware to be installed in your home, meaning it’s impossible to sign up from abroad. That said, if you’re travelling, you can use a VPN to sign in and access these services as normal.
Can I use a free VPN to watch the Indy 500 race online?
It’s tempting to think that a free VPN could be a suitable alternative but the reality is that free VPNs ultimately fall short. Not only do free VPNs fail to actually unblock the streaming platforms showing the Indy 500 race online, but data caps and bandwidth throttling make streaming impractical. Indeed, you’ll likely have to put up with heavy lag and buffering which can cause you to miss out on key moment from the Indy 500.
Consider also that many free VPNs simply don’t offer the necessary level of encryption to keep your internet traffic safe. So you may be putting your data at risk by using one, particularly if it doesn’t offer leak protection either. As with most free products, it’s worth questioning how a free VPN makes its money. Unfortunately, this is often through logging your browsing activity and selling the data to third parties.
Who is favorite to win the 2026 Indy 500?
Álex Palou is the reigning Indy 500 champion and qualified for pole position for 2026. That’s reflected in his favorable odds of +500. However, the 29-year-old Spaniard is expected to face stiff competition from Pato O’Ward (+550) and Josef Newgarden (+600). Indeed, Newgarden was back-to-back Indy 500 in 2023 and 2024.
