New England Patriots vs Kansas City Chiefs: How to Watch and Live Stream Online
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New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs meet in Week 15 of the 2026 NFL season, with kickoff scheduled for 8:15 PM ET on Monday, December 21, 2026. It’s the Monday night game — carried nationally, so unlike the Sunday afternoon fixtures, everyone in the United States can watch it. Here’s every legitimate way to follow along, at home or abroad.
Match essentials
| Fixture | New England Patriots vs Kansas City Chiefs |
| Competition | NFL, Week 15 (2026 season) |
| Date | Monday, December 21, 2026 |
| Kickoff | 8:15 PM ET / 7:15 PM CT / 6:15 PM MT / 5:15 PM PT |
| Window | Monday Night Football (national broadcast) |
| Live score | Updates automatically on this page |
What channel is the game on?
Monday Night Football is carried by ESPN under the NFL’s current rights agreement, with selected weeks also simulcast on ABC. A fixture of this profile in mid-December is a strong candidate for the ABC simulcast, which would put it on free-to-air television, but confirm the assignment closer to the date.
Anyone with a cable or satellite package that includes ESPN can watch on their usual channel, and the same credentials unlock the stream through the ESPN app or ESPN.com on phones, tablets, computers and smart TVs at no extra cost.
Why this one is easier to watch than most
If you’ve tried to follow an NFL afternoon game from outside a team’s home market, you’ll know the problem: FOX and CBS carry several fixtures simultaneously and distribute them regionally, so the game you want often isn’t the one your local channel has picked.
Monday night is different. There’s one game in the window and it goes out nationally. No blackouts, no market restrictions, and no need for NFL Sunday Ticket — which doesn’t include primetime games at all. Wherever you are in the United States, this fixture is available.
Live stream without cable
ESPN’s standalone streaming service is the most direct route. ESPN now sells a subscription that includes the games it broadcasts, so no cable login is required.
If you’d rather have a full live TV package, YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, Fubo, DirecTV Stream and Sling TV Orange all carry ESPN. The first four also carry ABC in most markets, which matters if the game ends up on the broadcast simulcast; Sling’s ABC coverage is patchier.
Each of these services offers a free trial to new customers, generally five to seven days.
NFL+ and mobile viewing
NFL+ streams live local and primetime games to phones and tablets, and Monday night fixtures qualify as primetime, so this game is included. The limitation on the standard tier is that live games are restricted to mobile screens — you can’t cast the feed to a television.
NFL+ Premium adds full and condensed replays plus coaches’ film, which is the more useful tier if an 8:15 PM Eastern kickoff lands in the small hours where you are.
Watching from outside the United States
Primetime fixtures get the widest international distribution of any NFL game, so this is among the easier ones to find abroad.
United Kingdom and Ireland: Sky Sports carries Monday night games, and NFL Game Pass International — sold through DAZN — has every fixture live and on demand. Kickoff falls at 1:15 AM on Tuesday morning in the UK.
Canada: DAZN streams all games, with selected fixtures also on TSN and CTV.
Australia: ESPN Australia and Kayo Sports show live coverage, alongside NFL Game Pass. Kickoff is around 12:15 PM on Tuesday on the east coast — one of the more civilised NFL slots for Australian viewers.
South Asia: NFL Game Pass International is the most dependable option where no domestic broadcaster holds rights. Kickoff arrives at roughly 7:15 AM Tuesday in Bangladesh and 6:45 AM Tuesday in India.
Rights arrangements change between seasons, so check the current listing for your country rather than assuming last year’s still applies.
Free ways to watch legally
If the game is simulcast on ABC, an over-the-air antenna picks it up for nothing anywhere in the United States — no market restrictions apply to the Monday night window. That remains the cheapest option available and the one most viewers overlook.
Otherwise, ESPN’s streaming service and the live TV packages above all run promotional trials for new subscribers, enough to cover a single Monday if you time the signup.
For audio, Westwood One carries national radio coverage of primetime games, and both clubs’ local radio networks call the game free through their station apps — usually the simplest option for listeners overseas.
A word on unofficial streams
A fixture involving these two teams attracts a wall of sites promising free streams. They operate without licences, frequently carry malware or aggressive redirects, and have a habit of failing at the moment the game turns. The legitimate routes above cost little or nothing with a trial and don’t put your device or card details at risk.
What to expect
New England sit in the AFC East and Kansas City in the AFC West, so this isn’t a division game — but both are conference fixtures, and conference record is among the first tiebreakers applied when teams finish level for a wild-card place. By Week 15, with three rounds left, those margins are already narrowing.
The context gives it weight beyond the standings. New England arrive as reigning AFC champions, having reached Super Bowl LX. Kansas City have been the conference’s defining team for the better part of a decade, with three championships and a run of division titles behind them. The two met in the AFC Championship game in January 2019, a game decided in overtime that is still cited among the best of the modern era.
New England are expected to start Drake Maye at quarterback, with Rhamondre Stevenson at running back, A.J. Brown at receiver and Hunter Henry at tight end. Kansas City line up with Patrick Mahomes, Kenneth Walker III, Rashee Rice and Travis Kelce.
Both sides file injury designations in the days before kickoff, and December reports repay close reading — teams closing on a playoff seed manage workloads differently to teams still fighting for one.
Injury watch
New England Patriots: Marcus Bryant (IR. Injured Reserve. Expected Return Week 5), Harold Landry III (Physically Unable To Perform. Expected Return Week 5), Isaiah Iton (Questionable For Week 1 At Seattle), Jam Miller (Questionable For Week 1 At Seattle).
Kansas City Chiefs: Alohi Gilman (Questionable For Week 1 Vs. Denver), Jimmy Holiday (IR. Injured Reserve), Omarr Norman-lott (Physically Unable To Perform. Expected Return Week 6), Patrick Mahomes (Questionable For Week 1 Vs. Denver).
New England Patriots have won 0 of their last 4 games this site has covered. Kansas City Chiefs have won 0 of their last 3 games this site has covered.
Bookmark this page to follow New England Patriots against Kansas City Chiefs, or check the full NFL schedule.
Common questions
What time is the New England Patriots vs Kansas City Chiefs game?
Kickoff is 8:15 PM ET, 7:15 PM CT, 6:15 PM MT, 5:15 PM PT.
Is New England Patriots vs Kansas City Chiefs a division game?
New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs both play in the National Football Conference – East.
Where can I follow the live score for New England Patriots vs Kansas City Chiefs?
This page updates automatically once the game begins, and shows the final result once it ends.