Ten seconds was all that separated general classification leader Jonas Vingegaard from Tadej Pogačar as we entered the final week of the 2023 Tour de France but Stage 16 and 17 have just changed everything! You can watch Tour de France stages 16, 17 and 18 live online and for free on ITVX in the U.K., and on SBS on Demand in Australia.
Read on and we'll show you how to watch Tour de France stages 16, 17 and 18 from anywhere with a VPN, and potentially for FREE.
Tour de France stages 16, 17 and 18 will take place on July 18, 19 and 20.
► U.K. — ITVX (FREE)
► Australia — SBS on Demand (FREE)
► U.S. — Peacock
► Watch anywhere — Try ExpressVPN 100% risk free
Stage 16 was the only ITT of the Tour, though the 22.4km route from Passy to Combloux looked neither long nor gruelling enough to make too much of a mark on the order, with the Côte de Soudans (1.3km at 8.8%) and the the Côte de Domancy (2.5km at 9.4%) the only landmarks of note. That's not the way the man in yellow saw it. Vingegaard smashed his opponents with a ride that gave him over a minute and a half on his only realistic rival Pogačar.
But that was nothing compared to what happened on Stage 17. The 166km ride from Saint-Gervais-les-Bains to Courchevel took in 5,405m in elevation gain, with the final 5km ascending at more than 10% following a series of energy-sapping climbs over the Col des Saises (13.4km at 5.1%), Cormet de Roselend (19.9km at 6%), and Côte de Longefoy (6.6km at 7.5%). It was the most brutal stage of them all, and the moment for Pogačar to make his move. However, the Dane put down the hammer in the Alps, and now has 7 minutes and 35 seconds on his nearest challenger.
He was understandably knackered at the end of it, but Stage 18 today will provide some sweet relief ahead of what will surely be a triumphant run-in, with the sprinters expected to spring into life for the largely flat 185km route from Moûtiers to Bourg-en-Bresse.
Here's how to watch Tour de France live streams of stages 16, 17 and 18 online from anywhere.
FREE Tour de France live streams
If you live in the U.K., Australia, France, Italy, Spain or Belgium, then you can look forward to a FREE Tour de France live stream in 2023.
That's because the free-to-air ITV4 and its ITVX streaming service in the U.K., SBS and SBS on Demand streaming service in Australia, France.TV in France, Rai Play in Italy, Teledeporte in Spain, and RTBF in Belgium all have rights to the action.
But what if you're based in one of those countries but aren't at home to catch that free Tour de France coverage? Maybe you're on holiday and don't want to spend money on pay TV in another country, when you'd usually be able to watch for free at home?
Don't worry — you can watch it via a VPN instead. We'll show you how to do that below.
Tour de France live streams around the world
It's only natural that you might want to watch a Tour de France live stream from your home country, but what if you're not there when the race is on?
Look no further than a VPN, or virtual private network. A VPN makes it look as if you're surfing the web from your home country, rather than the one you're in. That means you can access the streaming services you already pay for, from anywhere on Earth. Or anywhere that has an internet connection, at least.
For instance, a Brit who's currently in the U.S. could watch Tour de France live streams on ITVX, even though they're not in the U.K..
They're totally legal, inexpensive and easy to use. We've tested lots of the best VPN services and our favorite right now is ExpressVPN. It's fast, works on loads of devices and even offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Using a VPN is incredibly simple.
1. Install the VPN of your choice. As we've said, ExpressVPN is our favorite.
2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. For instance if you're in the U.S. and want to view a British service, you'd select U.K. from the list.
3. Sit back and enjoy the action. Head to ITVX or another website and watch Tour de France.
How to watch Tour de France live streams in the US
Tour de France stages 16, 17 and 18 are being live streamed on Peacock in the U.S..
Peacock costs just $4.99/month with ads, or $9.99 without, and includes lots more great content in addition to Tour de France live streams.
If you already use the service but aren't in the U.S. right now, you can watch Tour de France live streams by using the No.1 cycling VPN. And if, for whatever reason, you can't get it working, do remember that you have the comfort of a 30-day money-back guarantee with ExpressVPN.
How to watch Tour de France live streams in the UK
As explained above, every Tour de France stage is being shown for free in the U.K. courtesy of ITV and ITVX (formerly ITV Hub).
For those who prefer Welsh-language commentary, S4C is also providing free coverage of the race. This can be accessed for free via BBC iPlayer.
Alternatively, there's Discovery Plus and Eurosport, which have ad-free Tour de France coverage. As Eurosport is part of Discovery Plus, it doesn't matter one which you subscribe to.
Discovery Plus is available for £6.99/month or £59.99/year. You can sign up for Discovery Plus here, or access the service via Amazon Prime Video — and here you can get a seven-day free trial of the service. Plus, if you don't already have Amazon Prime itself, you can get a 30-day free trial of that too.
On holiday this week? Sign up to ExpressVPN or another VPN service and you'll be able to use the services you already subscribe to.
How to watch Tour de France live streams in Canada
Cycling fans in Canada can watch Tour de France stages 16, 17 and 18 on FloBikes, which costs US$150 per year.
Not at home right now? Use ExpressVPN or another VPN service to trick your device into thinking you're still in Canada.
How to watch Tour de France live streams in Australia
As you may already be aware, Aussies can watch Tour de France for free on SBS and SBS on Demand.
Not in Australia right now? You can simply use a VPN, such as ExpressVPN, to watch Tour de France on your SBS account, as if you were back home.
More from Tom's Guide
- How to watch Wimbledon live streams 2023
- Google TV just got the Roku Channel
- Where you can watch the James Bond movies in order
