Winter Olympics 2026: Your Complete Guide to Watching Every Event
The 2026 Winter Olympics are now officially underway in Milano-Cortina, Italy, marking the return of the quadrennial celebration of snow and ice sports. Following the Beijing 2022 Games where Norway dominated the medal table with 16 golds, ahead of Germany, the USA, and host nation China, British hopes are significantly higher this time around. Team GB managed just two medals in Beijing—both in curling, with Eve Muirhead leading the women's team to gold and Bruce Mouat securing silver for the men. UK Sport has set an ambitious target of four to eight medals for Milano-Cortina, with potential success extending beyond curling to freestyle skiing, snowboarding, and ice dance.
Event Schedule and Venue Breakdown
The Games officially commenced on 4 February, with the opening ceremony scheduled for 6 February, and will conclude with the closing ceremony on 22 February. Over 19 action-packed days, athletes will compete in 116 medal events across four distinct geographical zones in Italy. Milano will host the ceremonies along with sports like ice hockey, speed skating, and figure skating. Valtellina is the venue for freestyle skiing and snowboard events, while Cortina will feature women's Alpine skiing and ice sports including curling, skeleton, and luge. Val di Fiemme will be the stage for ski jumping and cross-country skiing competitions.
How to Watch Every Minute in the UK and Ireland
Viewers in the United Kingdom and Ireland have unprecedented access to the Winter Olympics, with over 850 hours of live coverage available across every sport, venue, and medal event. The primary broadcasters are TNT Sports and the streaming service discovery+, offering comprehensive coverage starting from just £3.99 per month in the UK and €4.99 per month in Ireland on discovery+. This subscription provides access to TNT Sports 2 and multiple live event feeds, ensuring no moment is missed.
Live competition coverage will run daily from 9am to 10pm, complemented by an hour-long studio show previewing the day's events from 8am and an end-of-day round-up once the sporting action concludes. The commentary and punditry team features an impressive lineup of Olympic veterans, including skeleton gold medallist Amy Williams, two-time Olympian and snowboarder Aimee Fuller, alpine skiers Ed Drake and Charlie Guest, bobsleigh pilot Lamin Deen, and curling bronze medallist Vicki Chalmers.
Platform-Specific Viewing Options
Sky TV: Access is available via TNT Sports on discovery+, depending on your subscription type. Sky TV customers can also activate discovery+ Entertainment at no extra cost, providing full Olympic coverage.
Virgin Media UK: Watch on TNT Sports; Virgin Media Entertainment customers have access via two linear pop-up channels.
Virgin Media Ireland: Tune in on TNT Sports.
EE/BT: Access via TNT Sports on discovery+ is dependent on subscription type.
Amazon PVC: Available through any discovery+ subscription.
Vodafone UK: Customers can access coverage via a discovery+ Entertainment subscription.
Streaming Devices: Platforms including Roku, Samsung, Amazon Fire TV, PlayStation, Apple TV+, Google TV, and Xbox support access through any discovery+ subscription.
BBC Coverage Details
The BBC will also provide extensive coverage, featuring two streams of live daytime action: between 9am and 10pm each day on BBC One and BBC Two, and an Olympics Extra live stream on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport from 8am to 11pm. In total, the BBC will broadcast 450 hours of live sport, with analysis from renowned figures such as two-time skeleton Olympic champion Lizzy Yarnold, figure skating gold medallist Robin Cousins, curling gold medallist Vicky Wright, and former bobsledder Montell Douglas.
This multi-platform approach ensures that fans across the UK and Ireland can follow every thrilling moment of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, from the opening ceremony to the final medal events, all from the comfort of their homes.
