USA vs. Belgium is one of the most anticipated matchups of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and millions of fans will be settling in front of their screens on Monday to watch it unfold.
But there is a good chance your stream won't go quite as planned. Just as the referee blows the whistle for kickoff, your crisp picture could easily drop into a pixelated, low-res mess — or freeze entirely.
The culprit? Your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
During major live sporting events, internet service providers frequently throttle bandwidth to manage the surge in users.
The good news is there's a straightforward technical fix, and you don't need to be particularly tech-savvy to use it.
The best VPNs encrypt your internet traffic before it leaves your device, masking it from your ISP. Because your provider can no longer see what kind of data you're consuming, it won't trigger its throttling algorithms — leaving you with a stable, high-def stream from kickoff to the final whistle.
Is it worth keeping after the match?
If you decide to keep the service beyond Monday's match, an annual plan breaks down to less than a single match-day takeaway — and it will cover your connection for every remaining game for the rest of the year.
Because it comes with an industry-double 60-day money-back guarantee, you can essentially test it out completely risk-free. If it doesn't instantly stabilize your stream, you can claim a full refund without any hassle.
Either way, don't leave it until the last minute. Get the app downloaded and run a quick speed test before kickoff today — so when the first whistle blows, you're confident in your stream.
We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
