The 152nd Kentucky Derby (2026), one of the world’s premier horse racing events and the first leg of America’s Triple Crown – followed by the Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes – will take place on Saturday, May 2 at Churchill Downs.
Only 13 horses in history have won all three races, the most recent being Justify in 2018. The Derby spans 1.25 miles and is known as “the most exciting two minutes in sport.”
Renegade, a 3-year-old colt, enters the race as the favorite after winning the Arkansas Derby. However, he is set to start from the dreaded No. 1 gate, a position that has not produced a winner since 1986.
Additionally, Ado, ridden by John Velazquez, is another strong contender after winning the 2026 Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland. Commandment (winner of the 2026 Florida Derby), Chief Wallabee (who has finished “in the money” in all three starts this year) and The Puma (winner of the 2026 Tampa Bay Derby) are also among oddsmakers’ favorites.
Read on to find out how to watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby live online from anywhere in the world.
How to watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby online from anywhere
If you want to watch the Kentucky Derby 2026 but you’re away from home and access to the event is geo-blocked, you can still use a VPN to access it (assuming you’re not violating the broadcaster’s terms and conditions, of course). You might be surprised how simple it is to do.
Use NordVPN to watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby online from anywhere.
How to watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby online in the US
The 2026 Kentucky Derby will air live on NBC, beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 2.
Cord cutters can catch all the action on NBC via Sling, whose Sling Blue package costs just $45 and is, in fact, currently available for 50% off. Other live TV options include YouTube TV (10-day free trial), Hulu+Live TV, and DirecTV.
Alternatively, you can stream this year’s Kentucky Derby on Peacock. The event is available through Premium Membership, which costs $10.99 per month.
Are you traveling abroad? If you are currently traveling outside of the United States, you can use a VPN to watch the Kentucky Derby 2026 from anywhere in the world. We recommend NordVPN.
How to watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby online in the UK
The 2026 Kentucky Derby is broadcast live on Air sports races in the United Kingdom. If you don’t have sports channels included in your Sky subscription, it will cost you £22/month to add them.
If you don’t fancy a full-fledged Sky subscription, you can watch the Kentucky Derby 2026 on Now Sports, which costs £14.99 for 24 hours or £34.99 for a whole month.
Are you traveling outside the UK? Use a VPN to watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby from abroad. NordVPN is our recommended supplier.
How to watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby in Australia
Unfortunately, the Kentucky Derby appears to have slipped through the cracks in Australia. If anything changes, we’ll let you know here.
Outside of Oz right now? To use NordVPN to stream your local content library and watch the 2026 Kentucky Derby.
2026 Kentucky Derby Horses and Riders
- Renegade (Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr., Coach:Todd Pletcher)
- Albus (Manny Franco, Riley Mott)
- Fearless (Hector Barrios, Jeff Mullins)
- Decisive test (Martin Garcia, Bob Baffert)
- Right to Party (Chris Elliott, Kenny McPeek)
- Command (Luis Saez, Brad Cox)
- Danon Bourbon (Atsuya Nishimura, Manabu Ikezoe)
- So Happy (Mike Smith, Mark Glat)
- The Puma (Javier Castellano, Gustavo Delgado)
- Wonder (Dean Ryusei Sakai, Daisuke Takayanagi)
- Incredibolt (Jamie Torres, Riley Mott)
- Chief Wallabee (Junior Alvarado, Bill Mott)
- Silent Tactic (Cristian Torres, Mark Casse)
- Potente (Juan Hernández, Bob Baffer)
- Emerging market (Flavien Prat, Chad Brown)
- Pavlovian (Edwin Maldonado, Doug O’Neill)
- Six Speed (Brian Hernandez Jr., Bhupat Seemar)
- Further (John Velazquez, Brad Cox)
- Golden Tempo (Jose Ortiz, Cherie DeVaux)
- Fulleffort (Tyler Gaffalione, Brad Cox)
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Access a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protect your online security and strengthen your online privacy abroad. We do not support or condone illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consumption of paid pirated content is not endorsed or endorsed by Future Publishing.
