What an opening day of The Ashes that was! Mitchell Starc took seven wickets as Australia bowled out England for 172. But led by Ben Stokes’ five-for, England came roaring back to leave Australia 123/9 at the close.
But what if you didn’t pull an all-nighter to watch the game, or you were at work and couldn’t catch the action? Fear not, BBC iPlayer will have free, in-depth highlights of the day’s play for UK residents to watch.
For those travelling in the US or Canada, or who even spent the day at the Test match in Australia, don’t worry — we’ve got you covered. Here’s how to watch Ashes 2025–26 highlights for free, wherever you are in the world…
How to watch The Ashes 2025-26 highlights free on BBC iPlayer
The BBC’s online streaming site, BBC iPlayer, is streaming in-depth highlights of The Ashes with the Test Match Special team leading the coverage.
How to watch The Ashes highlights on BBC iPlayer from anywhere
BBC iPlayer is only showing The Ashes highlights to residents of the UK.
Those traveling or working outside the UK will need to use a VPN to access BBC iPlayer.
There are lots of VPNs, but NordVPN is the one you can rely on to unblock BBC iPlayer and watch from anywhere in the world.
It’s super simple to use a VPN to watch The Ashes on BBC iPlayer.
1. Install the VPN of your choice. As we’ve said, NordVPN is our favorite.
2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. For instance, if you’re visiting the US and want to watch your free BBC iPlayer stream, you’d select ‘United Kingdom’.
3. Sit back and enjoy the action. Head to BBC iPlayer, sign in, and watch The Ashes highlights for free.
What devices is BBC iPlayer available on?
You can use BBC iPlayer on all of the following devices and platforms:
Amazon Fire (Tablets, Cube, Stick, TVs)
Android TV (please note: some models aren’t supported)
Android (Mobile & Tablet) – Android 7.0 and above
Apple TV (tvOS 14 or later)
Google TV
Freely
Freesat (please note: some models aren’t supported)
Freeview Play (TVs and set-top boxes)
iOS (iPhone & iPad) – iOS 14 and above
LG Smart TVs (2016-2024)
NOW Smart Sticks and Boxes (minimum firmware v11.5.0)
PlayStation (PS4 and PS5)
Roku (Stick & Roku-OS powered TVs, minimum firmware v11.5.0)
Samsung Smart TVs (2017 and above – 2016 models only offer on demand TV)
Sky Q, Sky Glass and Sky Stream
Virgin Media (360, Stream, TiVo)
YouView (BT, Humax, Sony, TalkTalk)
Xbox (One, Series X, Series S)
The best TVs for all budgets
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