Horse Racing on Ireland IPTV: Cheltenham to Galway

Horse racing runs deep in Irish life. From Cheltenham in March to the Galway Races in summer and Leopardstown at Christmas, the big festivals are national occasions, and for many people daily racing is part of the routine. Ireland IPTV lets you follow it all on your TV, phone or tablet with no dish and no contract.

This guide explains how to watch horse racing with Ireland IPTV, which festivals and channels matter, which plan to choose and how to follow the action when you are away from home.

The big racing festivals for Irish fans

Every racing year has its highlights. These are the dates most Irish fans mark on the calendar:

• Cheltenham Festival (March): four days of the best jump racing, with huge Irish interest in every race.
• Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse (Easter Monday).
• Aintree Grand National (April).
• Punchestown Festival (late April or early May): the climax of the Irish jumps season.
• Irish Guineas and Derby at the Curragh (May and June).
• Royal Ascot (June).
• Galway Races (late July and early August): a week-long festival like no other.
• Irish Champions Festival (September) at Leopardstown and the Curragh.
• Leopardstown Christmas Festival (26 to 29 December).

Where racing is shown

Racing coverage in Ireland and the UK is split between free-to-air channels, which show the biggest festivals, and dedicated racing channels, which show racing from almost every meeting, every day. With Ireland IPTV you can find:

• Irish channels such as RTÉ and Virgin Media for major festivals
• UK free-to-air channels that cover the biggest UK meetings
• Dedicated racing channels with daily coverage from Irish and UK tracks

Open the Sports or Racing category in your IPTV player and check the TV guide to see which channel is showing each meeting.

Which Ireland IPTV plan do you need?

The biggest festivals on free-to-air Irish and UK channels are available on every plan. For dedicated racing channels and the full sports line-up, choose:

• Every plan (from €14.99): all sports channels, including racing, in HD, 4K and 8K where available.
• Catch-up included: replay races from supported channels on any plan.

Compare plans on our pricing page.

How to follow a busy race day

On big days there is often more than one meeting at once. A few tricks help you keep up:

• Build a racing favourites group with the racing channels and the free-to-air channels that cover the festivals.
• Use the TV guide to see which meeting is on which channel, and set reminders for the races you care about.
• Use a second screen. Ask us for an extra connection, then watch one meeting on the TV and another on a tablet or phone.
• Try multi-view in apps that support it, such as TiviMate Premium, to watch two or more channels on one screen. See our TiviMate guide.

Cheltenham week: get your setup ready

Cheltenham is one of the busiest weeks of the year for streaming in Ireland. Prepare the weekend before:

1. Update your player app and your Firestick or TV software.
2. Connect the device to your router with an Ethernet cable, or move to 5 GHz Wi-Fi.
3. Add the channels covering Cheltenham to your favourites.
4. Restart the router and device on the morning of each race day.
5. Open the channel well before the first race, especially for the Champion Hurdle and the Gold Cup.

If the picture ever stutters, our buffering fix guide has quick solutions.

Watching racing on the go

Racing does not wait for you to get home. Install your IPTV player on your phone and log in with the same Ireland IPTV details to watch from the office, a car park or the pub. Mobile data use is around 2 to 3 GB per hour in HD, so drop the quality in the app settings if your data allowance is limited.

Our guides for iPhone and Android show you how to set up your phone.

Catch-up and replays

Missed a big race? Catch-up is included on every plan, so you can scroll back in the TV guide and replay coverage from supported channels. It is perfect for rewatching a finish or seeing a race you missed at work.

Racing apps and extras worth using

Your Ireland IPTV player shows the racing, but a few extras make race days even better:

• The TV guide: scroll ahead to plan which meeting to watch and set reminders for feature races.
• Multi-view: in apps like TiviMate Premium, watch two meetings side by side.
• Picture in Picture on iPhone and iPad: keep the racing in a corner of your screen while you check the racecard.
• Catch-up: replay a finish from the past few days.

Why Ireland IPTV suits racing fans

Racing fans often watch at odd times and in odd places: an afternoon meeting on a work break, an evening meeting in the kitchen, or a big festival race in the car park before a match. Because Ireland IPTV runs on phones, tablets, laptops and TVs with a single login, the racing follows you around. And because there is no contract, you can take a 1-month plan for Cheltenham or a 12-month plan for the whole season.

A note on responsible betting

Racing and betting often go together. If you bet, set a budget and stick to it, and never chase losses. If gambling stops being fun, free and confidential help is available in Ireland from services such as Gamblers Anonymous Ireland and the HSE.

Never miss a race

With Ireland IPTV, every big festival and daily meeting is on your TV, phone and tablet. Pick your plan, set up your device with our guides and you will be ready for the next race day. For all the other sport included, see our sports channels guide.