The Olympic Opening Ceremony for the 2024 Summer Olympics is nearly upon us; it starts today (Friday, July 26) at 1:30 pm ET/10:30 am PT/6:30 pm UK/3:30 am AEST (the next day), and in this guide we'll help you figure out how to watch the big celebration.
US: Peacock | NBC
UK: iPlayer | BBC (free with license fee) | Discovery Plus
AU: Stan Sports | 9Now (free)
Watch abroad with a VPN
If you want to watch the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony in the UK or Australia, you'll be glad to know that you can do so for FREE on iPlayer and 9Now respectively. If you're abroad when the games are going on, you can watch the 2024 Olympics from anywhere by using a VPN.
While the Olympic Opening Ceremony isn't actually the first event of the Paris Olympics — the Olympic football matches began two days prior, and we're also in the midst of the Olympic handball and Olympic archery — it's an exciting way to kick off most of the competitions, and to bring all the athletes from various sports together in one crowd.
Unlike previous Olympic Opening Ceremonies, the 2024 iteration doesn't take place in a big stadium. Instead, it'll take place as a flotilla along the Seine, through central Paris, with a boat for each nation partaking in the games.
The Olympic Opening Ceremony isn't just going to be an important event for sports fans, but for those who like to see all the countries of the world coming together in a big act of unity.
So here's how to watch the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony, whether you're doing so on broadcast TV or online.
How to watch the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony in the US
The primary streaming home of the 2024 Olympics, including the Opening Ceremony, is NBCUniversal's streaming service Peacock.
Peacock is set to live stream every event and that includes the kick-off event. It'll begin at 1:30 pm ET/10:30 am PT on Friday, July 26. A subscription to Peacock starts at $5.99 per month or $59.99 per year for its ad-enabled tier and jumps up to $11.99 / $119.99 for its ad-free one.
Here's how to watch the Olympics on Peacock, for if you need extra information.
The Opening Ceremony will also be broadcast on NBC, which isn't the case for all sports, but it'll let a lot more people watch this important ceremony.
If you're a big Olympics fan, NBC will also be simulcasting the Opening Ceremony in 150 IMAX theaters around the country.
How to watch the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony in the UK
In the UK, the Olympic Opening Ceremony starts at 6:30 pm, which isn't too bad: perfect post-work pub timing!
If you want to watch the proceedings on TV, you can tune into BBC One, which will show the event as it happens.
Prefer to stream over the internet? iPlayer is your key to watching the Olympic Opening Ceremony, as you can use the Beeb's streaming service to watch its live channels over the internet with little fuss.
Both of these options are totally free, as long as you pay your license fee.
Another option to watch the Olympic opening ceremony is by signing up for Discovery Plus, which is the best option for people who want to as much of the Olympic events as possible.
Normally to watch sports on Discovery Plus, you need to pay £6.99 per month, but the streamer is offering a limited-time deal which makes its Standard plan just £3.99 per month until the end of the year.
How to watch the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony in Australia
What do you want to hear first, the free option or the paid option?
Free, of course: this is 9Now, the streaming home of Nine's various channels and programming, which is set to live stream many of the Olympic Events across the tournament.
Nine will also let you watch the Olympics on TV as it's hosting two free-to-air channels throughout the event for total coverage.
If you're a paid subscriber to Stan Sports, you'll also be able to use that to watch the Olympic Opening Ceremony and other sports. There's no need to pay to sign up if you're not a subscriber though, given that coverage is free with Nine.
How to watch the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony everywhere else
If you're going to be away from your normal TV setup but still want to watch the Olympic Opening Ceremony, you might run into some problems. Thankfully, you can solve this exact issue with a Virtual Private Network (VPN).
A VPN lets you change your IP address to that of the area of what you want to watch, meaning you can tune in to your favorite events, sports, shows or other content even if you're not there. Our favorite is NordVPN, which is the No. 1-rated VPN in the world right now according to our sister site, TechRadar.
How to use a VPN to watch any stream
- Download the app at NordVPN
- Choose the location of the streaming service you want to watch (UK, US, etc)
- Navigate to the streaming service and start watching!
Olympic Opening Ceremony FAQs
When does the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony begin?
Most broadcaster's coverage of the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony begins on Friday, July 26 at 7:30 pm local time; that coverts to 1:30 pm ET/10:30 am PT/6:30 pm UK. In Australia it's 3:30 am the next day, on Saturday, July 27.
Where does the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony take place?
The Olympic Opening Ceremony parade begins at the east side of the River Seine in Paris, at the Austerlitz Bridge.
It'll follow the river westward through the city, passing some of Paris' sports grounds, before the parade reaches the Iéna bridge which is where the ceremony celebrates its finale.
Can you see the 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony in person?
While most people around the world will tune in from abroad to watch the Opening Ceremony, you can actually see it in Paris too if you'd prefer.
Paid tickets for the Ceremony, which let spectators visit the lower quays between Austerlitz bridge and Iéna bridge (by the Eiffel Tower), are a little dear and you can find them here.
However the upper quays are free to access according to the Olympics website and there doesn't seem to be any ticketing system. Find the website here for more information.
