Streamers' delight: Sky, Spark both offering Super Bowl today

The Kansas City Chiefs will start as favourites in Super Bowl LIV with quarterback Patrick Mahomes in top form. Photo / Getty

Today's Super Bowl clash between the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs is all about huge numbers: More than 100 million are expected to watch the game on TV the US alone.

And an 18-person suite at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, which is hosting the game, will set you back US$439,000 ($640,000).

Both President Donald Trump and Democrat contender Michael Bloomberg are running 30-second ads during the breaks, which will cost US$5m a pop.

Here, thanks to the rise of streaming, watching the Super Bowl is as cheap as chips.

A new NFL deal, announced in December, saw Sky and Spark share American football rights, and today's Super Bowl is available on both Sky Sport Now and Spark Sport - from buildup to the game itself from around 12.30pm, to the half-time show and after-match reports.

Both services offer a 7-day free-trial for punters who haven't used them before.

Sky Sport Now also has a special on now that offers a week's access for $5.

The regular pricing for Sky Sport Now (which offers streaming versions of all of the broadcaster's sports channels, plus catchup content and highlights) costs $19.99 a week or $49.99 a month no contract or $39.99 a month if you sign up for a year.

Spark Sport costs $19.99 a month, with domestic cricket, Formula One, and English Premier League football among the other sports on the bill, along with selected NBA action (US basketball is also shared with Sky).

Both Sky Sport Now and Spark offer full HD video at 60 frames per second - that is, just as good if not better than most TV, and both have been behaving themselves in recent times.

More traditional Super Bowl viewing options

If streaming's not your bag, you can watch the Super Bowl on Sky's ESPN channel.

You can follow live updates at nzherald.co.nz from around midday.

Or, if you want a bit more atmosphere, members of Radio Sport are hosting a couple of viewing parties - one at The Cav in Ponsonby and the other at twentyone in Sky City.