Getty Jockey Emmet McNamara rides Serpentine to victory in the 2020 Epsom Derby.
Epsom Downs Racecourse will host the 242nd Epsom Derby on Saturday.
In the US, the race (11:30 a.m. ET start time) will be televised on NBC Sports Network (coverage starts at 10 a.m. ET). But if you don’t have cable, here are some different ways you can watch a live stream of the 2021 Epsom Derby online for free:
Note: Heavy may earn an affiliate commission if you sign up via a link on this page
FuboTV
You can watch a live stream of NBC Sports Network and 100-plus other TV channels on FuboTV, which comes with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch the 2021 Epsom Derby live on the FuboTV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One or Series X/S, Samsung Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the FuboTV website.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV also comes with 250 hours of cloud DVR space.
AT&T TV
AT&T TV has four different channel packages: “Entertainment,” “Choice,” “Ultimate” and “Premier.” NBC Sports Network is included in every one, while Olympic Channel is in “Ultimate” and above, but you can pick any package and any add-on you want with your free 14-day trial.
Note that the free trial isn’t advertised as such, but your “due today” amount will be $0 when signing up. If you watch on your computer, phone or tablet, you won’t be charged for 14 days. If you watch on a streaming device on your TV (Roku, Fire Stick, Apple TV, etc.), you will be charged for the first month, but you can get still get a full refund if you cancel before 14 days:
Once signed up for AT&T TV, you can watch the 2021 Epsom Derby live on the AT&T TV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Samsung Smart TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the AT&T TV website.
If you can’t watch live, AT&T TV also comes with 20 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to unlimited hours).
Sling TV
NBC Sports Network is one of 40-plus channels included in Sling TV’s “Sling Blue” package. This option doesn’t include a free trial, but it’s the cheapest streaming service with NBCSN, and you can get your first month for just $10:
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch the 2021 Epsom Derby live on the Sling TV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, airTV Mini, Oculus, Portal, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Sling TV website.
If you can’t watch live, Sling TV comes included with 50 hours of cloud DVR.
Hulu With Live TV
You can watch a live stream of NBC Sports Network and 65+ other TV channels via Hulu With Live TV, which you can try out for free with a seven-day trial:
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch the 2021 Epsom Derby live on the Hulu app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via the Hulu website.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu with Live TV also comes with 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials).
Epsom Derby 2021 Preview
For the first time since 2004, decorated Ballydoyle trainer Aidan O’Brien won’t have multiple horses in the Epsom Derby. Instead, his hopes of a stunning ninth Derby win — he already holds the trainers’ record — rest on the shoulders of 5-4 favorite Bolshoi Ballet, who’ll be ridden by Ryan Moore.
Bolshoi Ballet is coming off a pair of victories at Dublin’s Leopardstown Racecourse: He won the P.W. McGrath Memorial Ballysax Stakes (G3) by two-and-a-quarter lengths and the Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial Stakes (G3) by six.
O’Brien and his team elected not to enter ante-post favorite High Definition, preserving him for Irish Derby later this month.
“All the other horses had different options and they’ve decided to split up the two top horses,” the trainer said, according to Sky Sports.
“We’re happy with him [Bolshoi Ballet]. Everything has gone very smooth.
“He’s a very uncomplicated horse, you can ride him anywhere in the race. He’s always been very straight-forward and well-balanced.”
Jockey Frankie Dettori, a two-time winner who was set to ride High Definition before the horse’s withdrawal, will instead mount the Ed Dunlop-trained John Leeper (7-1), displacing Adam Kirby.
Kirby will ride Godolphin product Adayar (40-1), trained by one-time winner Charlie Appleby.
“I feel very sorry for Adam,” Dettori said, according to Racing TV. “He’s done most of the work on the horse and rode him (in a gallop) at Epsom last week — I can’t stress that enough.
“It’s not nice to be taken off a horse three days before the Derby. But it’s not my decision — I don’t pay the bills, and it’s an offer you can’t refuse as a jockey.
“It was a strange feeling, and I certainly didn’t come home with a happy face on Thursday because it’s not the way you want to get rides — but it is what it is, and we have to move on. I didn’t go looking for it — it just came to me.”
John Leeper was named for Dunlop’s late father, John (Leeper) Dunlop, a two-time winner as a trainer.
“It’s a great story from an English point of view to have a horse named after my father, who won the Derby twice,” Dunlop said, according to Sky Sports. “Quite rightly people are latching on to it. There’s obviously a lot of sentimental reasons for it all.
“There is pressure because of his name, but he doesn’t know what his name is.”
Dunlop added: “We’ll shed a tear if he wins.”