BBC iPlayer: what it carries and how to watch — Wimbledon, the Olympics, the World Cup and European Championship, the FA Cup, Match of the Day highlights, and a wide slate of minority sport that commercial broadcasters would not carry. That is what BBC iPlayer carries. Where it stops: Requires a TV licence, which has been a legal requirement for watching live television in the UK since 1946. Some sport is UK-only because of the rights.
ITVX: what it carries and how to watch — Live football in its free window, racing, and a large on-demand archive. England internationals and FA Cup matches have been part of its free sport. So that is the sport on ITVX. The limits: Free with advertising, and the free tier carries the live channels. The premium tier adds box sets rather than sport.
Channel 4: what it carries and how to watch — Paralympic sport, some live events and highlights. Its Paralympics coverage is the most substantial free coverage of that event in the UK. That is Channel 4 in short. What it does not do: Free with advertising, no subscription. Its sport slate is narrower than ITV's or the BBC's.
ARD and ZDF: what it carries and how to watch — The Olympics, athletics, international football, Bundesliga highlights, and the cup competition. Between them they carry one of the widest free sports slates in Europe. The live league matches shown free are on Sat.1 and RTL, not here. For ARD and ZDF, that is the coverage. And its boundaries: Funded by a household broadcasting fee rather than a subscription, so there is nothing to pay at the point of use. Some streamed content is limited to Germany.
France.tv: what it carries and how to watch — Major events, free highlights and some live sport. Free highlights for the domestic league sit here. That is what you get from France.tv. What you do not: Free, but geo-fenced to France for rights-protected events.
RTVE Play: what it carries and how to watch — Selected live rights, the national team, the domestic cup and a range of other sport. That is RTVE Play for sport. The catch to know: Free, no subscription for most content. Some rights are limited to Spain.
SBS On Demand: what it carries and how to watch — The FIFA World Cup, the Tour de France, and a range of other free sport, in a public service running since 1975. So SBS On Demand carries that much. Where it ends: Free, no subscription. Registration is required, and content is geo-fenced to Australia.
CBC Gem: what it carries and how to watch — The Olympics, amateur sport and a wide free slate. That is the useful part of CBC Gem. The honest limit: Free, no subscription. Registration required, and content is geo-fenced to Canada.
ABC iview: what it carries and how to watch — The Olympics and a wide range of live sport, including minority sport that commercial broadcasters do not carry. That is what ABC iview shows. What it leaves out: Free, no subscription. Content is geo-fenced to Australia.
Pluto TV: what it carries and how to watch — A rotating slate of league and sport channels, free with advertising since 2014. The exact line-up changes by market and by month. For Pluto TV, start there. The boundary to know: Free with advertising, no subscription and no account needed for much of it. It does not carry the premium live rights that subscription broadcasters hold.
