Brighton vs Manchester United live stream and how to watch the FA Cup semi-final for free anywhere, team news

Watch Brighton vs Manchester United live stream
(Image credit: Getty Images / Michael Regan)

Brighton vs Manchester United live stream

Brighton vs Manchester United is available to watch for free on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK on Sunday 23rd April (4.30pm BST / 11.30am EDT). You can also watch this FA Cup semi-final on ESPN Plus in the USA, and on Paramount Plus in Australia. Use a VPN to watch your local stream from anywhere if you happen to be away from home.  Full details on how to watch Brighton vs Manchester United on TV today just below.

The teams are in and Brighton start with Danny Welbeck up front as Evan Ferguson has lost his fitness battle for the semi-final. Moises Caicedo, Kaoru Mitom and Pervis Estupinan all start for the Seagulls, while Adam Webster gets the nod alongside captain Lewis Dunk at the back. Julio Enciso's fine recent form earns him a start. For Manchester United, meanwhile, Marcus Rashford is back in from the start, with Casemiro, Luke Shaw, Anthony Martial and Bruno Fernandes all also starting. The suspended Harry Maguire misses out, which means Shaw will be drafted into centre-back duty, with Diogo Dalot operating at left-back. Jadon Sancho, Marcel Sabitzer and Wout Weghorst are all on the bench.

Brighton vs Manchester United live stream: match preview

From the long walk up Wembley Way on a crisp spring afternoon to the smell of a burger van, an FA Cup semi-final is one of the occasions of any football season. When the two teams involved provide as fascinating a clash as Brighton and Manchester United, the event moves from 'worth a watch' to 'must not miss'. The 2022/23 season's surprise package meet a resurgent Red Devils in what could be a swashbuckling affair.

Brighton in 2022/23 are exactly what football should be about. Starting brilliantly, they didn't let the poaching of their manager by one of the bigger boys get on top of them and have not only stabilised under Roberto De Zerbi, but have surged ahead to become even better than their previous iteration. The Seagulls have lost just twice in all competitions in 2023 – an unexpected reverse to Fulham and a VAR-affected defeat at Tottenham a fortnight ago – and play with the unbridled brio and dynamism of a team of flyweight boxers.

Kaoru Mitoma leads the way with 10 goals in all competitions, closely followed by precocious teenage forward Evan Ferguson, but it's the improvements to stalwarts Lewis Dunk and, in particular, wing-back Solly March that best highlight the fine coaching work done by De Zerbi on the South Coast. Last weekend's comprehensive 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge over a listless Chelsea proved how far Brighton have come to sit seventh in the league. They've knocked out Middlesbrough, Liverpool, Stoke and Grimsby to reach the last four.

Still hunting a cup double, third-placed Manchester United remain consistently inconsistent – they've beaten Manchester City, lost to them 6-3, fallen 7-0 to Liverpool at Anfield and capitulated in comical fashion 3-0 at Sevilla in the Europa League on Thursday evening – but Erik ten Hag's first season in the Old Trafford dugout will go down as a success on the balance of probabilities.

The League Cup champions are beginning to show the high-intensity demand from their Dutch boss and are on a three-game winning run in the Premier League in which they've kept consecutive clean sheets, despite recent injuries to Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane. They know, however, there must be no repeat of Thursday's Europa League calamities in which David de Gea (and partly Harry Maguire) led to a quarter-final exit.

Marcus Rashford has shaken off his recent muscle problem and will look to add to his fine goalscoring campaign, while Christian Eriksen is the conduit through which much of their midfield play flows and allows Bruno Fernandes to shine as an out-and-out No.10. Anthony Martial has also returned to fitness in fine form. They count Everton, Reading, West Ham and Fulham as their FA Cup victims this term.

Brighton vs Manchester United kicks off at 4.30pm BST / 11.30am EDT today, Sunday April 23rd at Wembley. Make sure you know how to watch a Brighton vs Manchester United live stream from anywhere in the world.

UK: Brighton vs Manchester United free live stream

Brighton vs Manchester United will be shown live on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website in HD. Kick off is at 4.30pm BST Sunday 23rd April from Wembley.

use a VPN to watch BBC iPlayer from anywhere .

UK football fans, whether at home or abroad, can use a VPN to watch BBC iPlayer from anywhere to watch Brighton vs Manchester United.

We recommend ExpressVPN as it comes with a risk-free 30-day money-back guarantee. Full details on how to use a VPN below.

Watch Brighton vs Manchester United live stream from anywhere

You won't be able to watch your regular Brighton vs Manchester United live stream while traveling abroad. The streaming service will spot that you're in a foreign country and block you. You can use a VPN (virtual private network) to get around this, though.

It's a straightforward piece of software which sets your device to appear as if it's in the right country, allowing you to watch any Brighton vs Manchester United live stream from anywhere in the world.

We rate ExpressVPN as the best VPN for the FA Cup. It offers a 30-day guarantee for all your money back if you're not happy with the service.

Try ExpressVPN risk-free for 30 days

Try ExpressVPN risk-free for 30 days
ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money back guarantee with its VPN service. You can use it to watch the FA Cup live streams on your mobile, tablet, laptop, TV, games console and more. There's 24/7 customer support and three months free when you sign-up. Try it – it's easier than you think.

How to use a VPN for Brighton vs Manchester United live stream

1. Install the VPN of your choice. ExpressVPN is the one we recommend.

2. Open up the VPN app and choose the location of the service you wish to access. For Brighton vs Manchester United in the FA Cup, you may wish to choose 'UK' for BBC iPlayer or BBC Sport.

3. Then head over to  BBC iPlayer on your browser or device and enjoy the free Brighton vs Manchester United live stream!

USA: watch Brighton vs Manchester United live stream

In the USA, ESPN+ has the TV rights to the Brighton vs Manchester United live stream. ESPN+ is a streaming-only service carries a wealth of top sports content including MLB, NHL, MLS, Top Rank Boxing events and Grand Slam tennis as well as FA Cup soccer. You can subscribe to it on its own or as part of the Disney Bundle along with Hulu and Disney Plus.

Remember, though, if you're a UK citizen abroad, you can use a VPN to watch the FA Cup free on BBC iPlayer.

Brighton vs Manchester United live stream on ESPN+ ($9.99)

Brighton vs Manchester United live stream on ESPN+ ($9.99)
Click through to buy your ESPN+ subscription and watch all ESPN+ sports events live streams fro the US, UK, Australia and elsewhere. Arguably the best deal is the Disney Bundle of Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ all for just $13.99 per month (ad-supported) or $19.99 (ad-free).

Australia: watch Brighton vs Manchester United live stream

If you're in Australia, you can watch a Brighton vs Manchester United live stream on Paramount Plus as well as the rest of the FA Cup games this season.

Stuck away from your home in Oz at the moment? You'll need to use a VPN to access your Brighton vs Manchester United live stream on Paramount Plus without being geo-blocked.

Brighton vs Manchester United live stream Paramount+ 7-day free trial

Brighton vs Manchester United live stream Paramount+ 7-day free trial
Stream the FA Cup quarter-finals, plus tonnes of TV boxsets and classic movies, with this Paramount+ free trial. Subscription costs AU$8.99 a month thereafter. Cancel anytime.

Brighton vs Manchester United live stream kick-off times

Global Brighton vs Manchester United kick-off times, Sunday 23rd April :

  • UK: 4.30pm
  • Central Europe: 5.30pm
  • USA (EDT/PDT): 11.30am / 8.30am
  • Australia: 1.30am (Monday)
  • New Zealand: 3.30am (Monday)

FA Cup semi-final fixtures – dates & TV times

All times 4.30pm BST (UK time) unless otherwise stated

Saturday 22nd April
Manchester City vs Sheffield United, 4.45pm

Sunday 23rd April
Brighton & Hove Albion vs Manchester United

Final – Saturday 3rd June, 2023

Andy Murray
Contributor

Andy Murray is an award-winning sports writer and columnist. A fluent Spanish speaker and former semi-professional footballer, he was senior staff writer of world-leading football magazine FourFourTwo for seven years and continues to write and edit for them, national newspapers, websites and Premier League clubs. He is not a famous tennis player.