United Airlines and DIRECTV are teaming up to enable passengers to watch live streaming TV on Starlink-enabled seatback screens. The collaboration is enabling football fans to watch all the action from the 2026 FIFA World Cup taking place in Canada, Mexico and the United States of America.
Through DIRECTV and BBC, United passengers on these aircraft have free access to more than a dozen live TV channels. Those include FOX, Fox Sports 1, Apple F1, ABC, ESPN, TNT, CNN, CBS, NBC, TBS and BBC News. The channels offer live sports, news, weather, business and entertainment.
Streamed to the aircraft using Starlink connectivity, this initiative uses the Viasat Live TV and Thales 360 web-enabled applications to tap into live TV content and present it to passengers’ seatback screens.
Starlink is currently active on more than 400 United and United Express aircraft. The carrier expects to outfit its entire fleet before the end of 2027.
Andrew Nocella, Chief Commercial Officer at United Airlines, said: “United is adding Starlink to more aircraft than any other airline in the world and teaming up with DIRECTV is a way for us to give customers a glimpse into the future of inflight entertainment with live sports and do it during one of the world’s most popular sporting events.
“Our journey started nearly a decade ago with a decision to install screens in every seat. We already have more than 160,000 screens across our fleet, with plans to basically double that number soon via new deliveries and retrofits. But just having static screens with On-Demand content was never our end game. The real customer benefit happens when those screens are dynamic and offer real-time, streaming content just like your phone. That’s where the combination of Starlink’s reliable and fast connectivity and DIRECTV IN FLIGHT live TV is a game-changer.”
