The wait is over, as the cream of the Northern Hemisphere goes into battle once more for another six weeks of enthralling rugby union action with the return of the Six Nations.

The 2024 edition of the tournament is being tipped to be one of the closest in recent memory, with an improving England strongly backed to go toe-to-toe with joint favorites Ireland and France. 

The French will be looking to bounce back from the home-turf heartbreak of their World Cup quarter-final exit in October. As the defending champs, Ireland will be looking to replicate last year's grand slam triumph without retired talisman Johnny Sexton. 

Below, we'll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to watch every match of the 2024 Six Nations, no matter where you are in the world. 

The 2024 Six Nations: When and where?

The 2024 Six Nations takes place over six weeks and 15 matches, starting with the opening fixture between France and defending champs Ireland at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille on Friday, Feb, 2, and ending with the concluding fixture between France and England on Saturday, March 16. A full list of fixtures can be found on the official Six Nations website. 

How to watch the 2024 Six Nations online from anywhere using a VPN

If you can't view the tournament locally, you may need a different way to watch this match; this is where a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic. It's also a great idea if you're traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you can virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors' Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Australia, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you're streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

Livestream the 2024 Six Nations in the US

Select Six Nations matches this season are being broadcast in the US on CNBC. The best option for watching the tournament is via the streaming service Peacock, which is showing every match live. You'll need a Peacock Premium or Premium Plus account to catch games live.

Watch the 2024 Six Nations for free in the UK

Rugby fans in the UK are among the luckiest in the world, as all matches of the 2024 Six Nations will be shown live on free-to-air networks BBC and ITV. This means viewers in the UK will be able to stream every game for free on ITVX. and BBC iPlayer. 

ITV's streaming online streaming service is free to viewers in the UK, with dedicated apps available for Apple and Android devices, as well as most smart TVs.

With matches being broadcast on linear BBC channels, that also means you'll be able to watch games broadcast on the network online for free via the network's on-demand streaming service, BBC iPlayer.

With an app that's available for Android and Apple mobile devices as well as a vast array of smart TVs and streaming boxes, all you need is a valid UK TV license to stream the game.

Watch the 2024 Six Nations for free in Ireland 

Live coverage is split between free-to-air terrestrial broadcasters RTÉ and Virgin Media in Ireland. That means you'll be able to stream games for free on their streaming platforms  Virgin Media Player and RTE Player.

Stream the 2024 Six Nations in Australia

Rugby fans Down Under can watch Six Nations matches on streaming service Stan Sport, which has exclusive rights to show games live in Australia this season.

Stream the 2024 Six Nations in Canada

If you want to stream Six Nations games live in Canada, subscribe to DAZN Canada. The service has exclusive broadcast rights to the tournament this season.

Stream the 2024 Six Nations in New Zealand

Pay TV broadcaster Sky Sport has broadcast rights to show every 2024 Six Nations game live in New Zealand.

Quick tips for streaming the 2024 Six Nations using a VPN

• With four variables at play -- your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN -- your experience and success when streaming Six Nations Rugby action live may vary.
• If you don't see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the "search for city or country" option.
• If you're having trouble getting the game after you've turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs -- like Roku -- don't have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you'll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you're using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network's sports app, you'll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location. 
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you're using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.