The eyes of the world will be on the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream, for both footballing and other reasons.
The Scotland vs Ukraine live stream takes place today (Wednesday, June 1).
► Time 7.45 p.m. BST / 2.45 p.m. ET / 11.45 a.m. PT
• U.K. — Watch on Sky Sports or Now
• U.S. — Watch on ESPN Plus
• Watch anywhere — try ExpressVPN 100% risk free
Obviously a mere soccer game pales into insignificance when set against the backdrop of war, but equally, this is no meaningless kickabout. Instead, it's a FIFA World Cup 2022 playoff, that will decide which of these two sides has a chance to qualify for the finals in Qatar later this year.
What's more, the Ukrainian team will all be playing for the millions back home who have endured horrendous hardships over the past three months. A win here won't remotely make up for all they've been through, but it might provide a rare moment of joy.
As the legendary striker and former national coach Andriy Shevchenko told BBC Sport, "We need to play for the fans, for the whole of Ukraine, for those at home, for those defending the country and for those who left the country."
That puts the Scots in rather a tricky position; people around the world will be rooting for Ukraine, so victory would have a bittersweet taste. But from a purely sporting point of view, Scotland will be desperate to reach their first finals since 1998. Ukraine have at least been there more recently, in 2006, but they've also missed out at this stage several times since. Make no mistake: this game matters.
The winner of this match will face Wales at the weekend, with the winner of that game confirming their place at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Find out which one has a chance by watching the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream.
Scotland vs Ukraine live stream: Team news
Ukraine's players have, for obvious reasons, not had the easiest preparations for this FIFA World Cup 2022 playoff semi-final.
With the domestic league suspended since Russia invaded, half of the squad have instead had to keep up their fitness as best they can through a training camp in Slovenia and friendly matches against club sides in Germany, Italy and Croatia.
The other half of the squad have been spread around Europe's top clubs, with the likes of Oleksandr Zinchenko, Roman Yaremchuk, Andriy Yarmolenko and Vitaliy Mykolenko all featuring today.
Scotland, meanwhile, will be without the injured Kieran Tierney, Ryan Jack and Nathan Patterson. Boss Steve Clarke will be hoping that Liverpool's Andy Robertson — Scotland's captain — has recovered from his Champions League final exertions (and disappointment).
Here's how they line up:
Scotland: Gordon, McTominay, Hanley, Cooper; Hickey, Gilmour, McGregor, Robertson; McGinn; Adams, Dykes.
Ukraine: Bushchan, Karavayev, Zabarnyi, Matviyenko, Mykolenko, Stepanenko, Yarmolenko, Malinovsky, Zinchenko, Tsygankov, Yaremchuk.
How to watch the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream wherever you are
The Scotland vs Ukraine live stream will be shown on many different channels across the world, but what if you're not in your home country and want to watch it on your usual service?
The answer is to use a VPN, or virtual private network. A VPN will let you tune into your home coverage from wherever you are — meaning that if you're abroad, you can use one of the best VPN services to watch the games live as if you were in your lounge.
Our favorite right now is ExpressVPN, thanks to its combination of superb speed, great customer service and excellent device support. It also offers a no-questions-asked 30-day money-back guarantee, so you could check it out without having to sign up long term.
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 U.K. service, you'd select U.K. from the list.
3. Sit back and enjoy the action. Head to the service of your choice and watch the game.
Exclusive Tom's Guide Discount: Save 49% on the 12-month ExpressVPN plan
How to watch the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream in the UK
Sky Sports has the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream in the U.K., so if you already have a Sky subscription that doesn't include Sports, you'll need to pay £25/month to add those channels.
Whichever package you go for, you'll also gain access to coverage in 4K and HDR, so long as you also have an HDR-ready Sky Q box and HLG-compatible TV.
If you don't want to shell out for a full Sky sub, you could also consider its Now Sports streaming service. This gives you 24-hour access for £9.99 or month-long access for £33.99 but once again, Sky is currently offering a great deal here: you can sign up for six months of access for just £25/month right now. Now Sports is available on virtually every streaming device out there and is a great option if you don't already have Sky.
All sounds great, right? But if you're not in the U.K., you can still follow the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream by using one of the best VPN services, such as ExpressVPN.
How to watch the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream in the US
You're going to need ESPN Plus to watch the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream in the U.S.
ESPN Plus is ESPN's standalone streaming service and is available via the ESPN website and many of the best streaming devices.
It's also a very well-priced service as these things go, with a subscription costing just $6.99 per month or $69.99 per year.
Better still, you can bundle it with Disney Plus and Hulu for an incredible $13.99 per month (or $19.99/month if you want ad-free Hulu). That saves you nearly $8 on the usual price of $21.97 if you signed up for those three services individually, making it one of the best deals in streaming TV.
How to watch the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream in Canada
The Scotland vs Ukraine live stream will be shown on TLN in Canada. The network has previously shown a selection of European World Cup qualifiers over the past few months, and this match has been chosen for broadcast.
Not at home in the Great White North right now? You can still follow the game by using one of the best VPN services, such as ExpressVPN.
How to watch the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream in Australia
Aussies can watch the Scotland vs Ukraine live stream on Optus Sport, which has the rights to all FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers.
Optus can be accessed via a dedicated mobile or tablet app, and also on Chromecast and Apple TV — plus it costs a very reasonable $14.99 AUD per month. An Annual Pass is also available for $139 AUD/year, but a current offer knocks that back to a bargain $99 AUD.
Not in Australia right now? You can simply use a VPN to watch all the action on your Optus account, as if you were back home.
