How to watch Paris-Roubaix 2023: live stream the Hell of the North

 Dylan Van Baarle
Dylan Van Baarle

Quick guide to watching Paris-Roubaix 2023

Dates: Saturday 8 April (women), Sunday 9 April (men)

Northern France hosts what might just be the most exciting weekend of bike racing we'll see this year, as the two biggest one-day races on the men's and women's calendars are held back to back.

AUS FREE live stream: SBS On Demand

UK: Stream on GCN+, Eurosport and Discovery+ (all £6.99 per month)

US: Stream on FLObikes ($150 per year)

Anywhere: watch your local live stream from anywhere with ExpressVPN 

This is "a quality VPN that delivers in just about every area", said our sister outlet TechRadar when it reviewed ExpressVPN in January.

What to expect at Paris-Roubaix 2023

When a race has become well established and earned the respect of teams, riders and fans, it often gets its own nickname. Well, Paris-Roubaix is so well respected it has two: the Hell of the North, and the Queen of the Classics.

It's one of the oldest races left on the calendar, having begun life in 1896, and it's loved, an icon of the sport. This is chiefly due to the cobbled tracks which back in its early years were par for the course, but in the modern age are an evocative throwback which adds a whole new dynamic to the race.

Then there's the velodrome finish – the only major race to enjoy such as finish. Throwing a handful of exhausted riders into the arena to scrap for the finish is reminiscent of the gladiatorial contests of ancient Rome, though often it's a solo rider who takes the plaudits.

This year that rider seems likely to be one of the 'big three' – Wout Van Aert, Mathieu Van Der Poel or Tadej Pogačar, though there are numerous others queueing up right behind them to take advantage of any weakness: last year's winner Dylan Van Baarle and his Ineos team-mate Tom Pidcock for example, or the prolific Christophe Laporte.

Read more: Hub page | Route and startlist

How to watch Paris-Roubaix 2023 in Australia

Bike racing fans in Australia have struck lucky with Paris-Roubaix this year – both men's and women's races are showing for free on the SBS On Demand service.

Aussie fans away from home can still watch the racing on SBS by signing up to a VPN service – see below.

How to watch a Paris-Roubaix live stream from outside your country

If you're away while Paris-Roubaix is on, watching it via your normal services is going to be difficult, as geo-blocking means they will usually be unavailable in your new location.

However, by signing up to a VPN this problem can be solved. A VPN is software which allows you to maintain privacy while changing your IP address, and allows you to access the internet content that you'd normally be able to back in your home country. This includes, of course, all your favourite cycling streaming services.

ExpressVPN comes highly recommended via our sister site TechRadar, which it rates consistently as the best out there.

How to watch Paris-Roubaix 2023 in the USA

Bike racing fans in the US will be able to watch both men's and women's Paris-Roubaix on the FLOBikes platform. The TV app is available on Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast and Apple TV, as well as on Android and iOS. Subscriptions cost $150 per year.

How to watch Paris-Roubaix 2023 in the UK

UK cycling fans are blessed with a number of streaming options for the upcoming Hell of the North. Three, to be precise. These included GCN+, Eurosport.co.uk, and DiscoveryPlus. Each of these cost £6.99 per month to sign up to, with the caveat that new Eurosport subscriptions are now with DiscoveryPlus (the £6.99 price though, is the same).

There are also annual options for both GCN+ (£39.99) and DiscoveryPlus (£59.99).

If you're abroad when the races are showing you can still watch them on these services if you download a VPN. This allows you to choose your location to watch live as if you are back at home. Setting up a VPN is simple – just download, install, open the app and select your location.

There are a number of VPN options out there, but we think going with ExpressVPN is the best.

ExpressVPN will also give you a 30-day money-back guarantee.

What time is Paris-Roubaix 2023 on?

Not all precise timings have been released yet, but UK fans can catch Paris-Roubaix Femmes on DiscoveryPlus from 14.00-17.00, and the men's race the following day from 09.30-17.00. Those timings are very likely to also broadly apply to GCN+ and Eurosport.

FLOBikes in the USA begins coverage of the women's race at 09.15 EST / 06.15 PST on the Saturday, with the men's race kicking off at a rather less social 05.00 EST / 02.00 PST the following day.

In Australia the women's race is showing from 23.15 to 02.00 (AEST) on SBS On Demand. The following day there will be highlights at 16.30-17.30.

Coverage of the men's race begins at 19.00 and continues to 01.45 (AEST). Anyone who can wait that long can catch highlights the following Sunday (16 April) from 16.00-17.00 AEST.