By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man – @tvanswerman
TV Answer Man, I am very excited about watching the women in the World Cup soccer matches this week. Do you know if the games will be in 4K and if you can stream all the games? — Justin, New Haven, Connecticut.
Justin, the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will begin this Thursday (July 20) with the first match, New Zealand vs. Norway, at 3 a.m. ET. (The time difference is because the tournament is being held in Australia and New Zealand.) As was the case for the Men’s World Cup, some games (29) will be on Fox network affiliates while some (35) will be on FS1. You can see a Fox TV schedule for the 64 games here.
The games will also be available in Spanish on Telemundo and Universo. You will also be able to stream every game in Spanish on Peacock; plans start at $4.99 a month. Here’s a schedule for Telemundo/Universo/Peacock.
Will the 2023 Women’s World Cup Be In 4K?
But will the matches be available in 4K, you ask?
Answer: Yes! All of them will be in 4K HDR (High Dynamic Range). (See this article on how HDR enhances a 4K picture.)
The pay TV services that are expected to carry the women’s World Cup matches on special 4K channels are DIRECTV, Dish, Comcast, Verizon, Optimum, YouTube TV, and FuboTV. (In markets where the Fox affiliate is provided with your programming package.) Check your on-screen guide for more details.
You will also be able to stream the games in 4K HDR on the Fox Sports app. (Note that Fox last week ended the Fox Now app.) There will also be an HD stream of the games on the Fox Sports app.
(You can learn more about which providers participate in the Fox 4K program here. To find out what you need to watch 4K on the Fox Sports app, including which devices are compatible, click here.)
Fox will likely require you to input your pay TV’s user name and password to watch the games on the Fox Sports app but you should be able to stream them for free at foxsports.com. You could also watch the Fox network affiliate games for free using a TV antenna. (DIRECTV in Nexstar markets read this.)
Note: Fox normally produces its 4K coverage in 1080p and ‘upscales’ it to a 4K broadcast as opposed to shooting the event in 4K and transmitting in the same format. Upscaling is the process when one video format is converted to another. In this case, Fox takes the 1080p HDR signal and convert it to a 4K format.
It’s unclear if Fox will offer an upscaled 4K of the games or a native 4K. The TV Answer Man will update this article if we get more information. See this article on the difference between upscaled 4K and native 4K.
Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.
— Phillip Swann
@tvanswerman
