The VRT is the Flemish Community’s public broadcaster in Belgium, with three television channels, five radio stations, and various digital channels. VRT MAX is VRT’s online platform, where you can watch movies, series, documentaries, shows, news, live streams, and other content. These items are all available in Belgium. Accessing VRT outside of Belgium, on the other hand, will result in geo-restriction issues.
Faced with such a frustrating experience, you will be unable to stream VRT content and you may miss important upcoming sports events such as the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA Euro League.
But there is no need to worry! I’ll show you how to use a VPN service to watch VRT outside of Belgium. By simply connecting to a VPN server in Belgium, we will get a Belgian IP address and stream VRT from anywhere in the world.
Analysis: In the EU zone, copyright and licensing agreements are extremely important. VRT’s content is partially available in the EU zone as Belgium is a member nation, but you must verify your nationality to gain access. Also, this may not necessarily mean you have access to the full catalog. In short, if you are not in Belgium, you will be unable to view upcoming sporting events or VRT MAX.
Solution: If you are looking for the fastest, cheapest, and easiest way to go around geo-restrictions, the answer would be a VPN service. A VPN service helps us be in Belgium virtually. All we have to do is connect to a VPN server in the Belgium data center and get ourselves a Belgian IP address.
A quick guide to streaming VRT outside Belgium via VPN:
- Visit Surfshark VPN: It has servers in Brussels and Antwerp, Belgium.
- Click the “Get SurfShark” button on the top right and choose a plan.
- Enter your email address and complete the transaction with your preferred payment method.
- Install the Surfshark app that is compatible with your device.
- Log in to the SurfShark app using the login credentials that were sent to your e-mail.
- Navigate to the “Locations” tab, search for Belgium, and then connect to an available server.
When the connection is established, the SurfShark icon will turn green, indicating that you now have a Belgian IP address. In other words, you are ready to watch VRT, as seen below.
It’s understandable that you’re feeling a little overwhelmed if this is your first time using a VPN service. But don’t be concerned. In the following sections, we will take a step-by-step look at the problem and its underlying causes.
Understanding VRT geo-restriction
By verifying your citizenship, you can access VRT from anywhere in the world. However, the entire catalog is only available in Belgium. This problem stems from the copyright and licensing agreements.
Let us try to illustrate this with an example. You’re basking in the sun at one of the Mediterranean’s pearly coves. After a while, you feel the need to cool off and decide to return to your bungalow. Furthermore, you don’t want to miss the latest episode of your favorite TV show, so you launch the VRT MAX app on your phone.
Regrettably, an unwelcome message will appear on your screen…
Original text: “Dit kan je hier niet bekijken. Door bepaalde rechten kunnen we sommige programma’s enkel in België.” vertonen.
Translation of the text: “You cannot view this here. Due to certain rights, we can only show some programs in Belgium.”
VRT MAX responds as follows when asked if we can watch the platform from abroad.
Even as a Belgian citizen, you will face these restrictions due to copyrights if you try to watch on-demand content, news, or sporting events outside of Belgium. VRT imposes these restrictions by analyzing your IP address and blocking you if you don’t have a Belgian IP address.
This is known as geo-restriction, and it is time to address it!
Watch VRT outside Belgium via VPN
Now that we’ve learned everything there is to know about VRT geo-restriction, it’s time to solve the problem with a VPN service. We will use a reliable VPN service to change our local IP address to a Belgian one.
A VPN encrypts our online traffic and assigns us an IP address from the server to which we connect. This will allow us to be in Belgium virtually and stream VRT from anywhere in the world.
That’s all!
However, we cannot rely on a random VPN service to watch VRT outside of Belgium. We definitely need a reliable one.
Choosing the best VPN for VRT
To watch VRT smoothly, we must choose a reliable and well-known VPN service. Based on my extensive research on VPN providers, I can attest that SurfShark is the best VPN provider for watching VRT from anywhere in the world.
SurfShark, which has servers in Brussels and Antwerp, provides us with a stable connection, complete privacy, and a seamless user experience.
- Go to the official SurfShark website.
- Choose a plan that best suits your needs and fill out the purchase form.
- Make a purchase using your preferred payment method.
After a successful purchase, SurfShark will send you login details for the service to your e-mail address.
VPN app installation
After obtaining your login credentials, the next step is to download and install the SurfShark app on the device that you intend to use the service.
- Revisit the official SurfShark website.
- Click the “Log in” button in the upper right corner.
- Log in with the credentials that were sent to your email address.
- Find your device and download the VPN app.
Follow the on-screen instructions to properly install the SurfShark app. It is critical to allow all VPN requests while going through this process in order to avoid any future issues with the service.
Connecting to the Belgium server
If you have completed all of the preceding steps, the VPN service you recently purchased is now ready for use. There is only one thing left to do to watch VRT without restrictions: connect to one of SurfShark’s Belgium servers.
To do this, follow the steps below:
- Launch the SurfShark app on your device.
- Go to “Location” in the menu on the left.
- Enter “Belgium” in the search bar and select a server in Brussels or Antwerp.
Once the connection is established, you are ready to enjoy your favorite VRT content from anywhere in the world.
Creating a VRT account
I suppose it goes without saying that, in addition to a VPN service, we also require a VRT account. If you already have an account, simply log in to the portal to begin streaming VRT. Don’t you have an account? There’s no need to be concerned! Creating a VRT account is completely free, and I will walk you through the process step-by-step.
- Visit the official website of VRT MAX.
- Go over to the login icon in the top right corner.
- Click “Nog geen VRT-profiel?” (No VRT profile yet?)
- Fill in the form with your e-mail address and a strong password. (The platform wants you to use +8 characters, 1 digit, and 1 capital letter in your password)
- Check your email and verify your HRT account.
In the second part of the form, the system wants you to fill in your first and last name, gender, date of birth, postal code, residence, and country. You can simply use Brussels’ postal code. As long as you are connected to a Belgium server of a VPN service, you will not need account verification.
If you prefer, you can use your Apple, Google, or Facebook account for easy access. After you fill out the form and confirm your email address, you’ll get a message saying that your account is now active.
We are ready to go!
Streaming VRT outside Belgium
We can watch VRT’s entire catalog from anywhere in the world now that we have an active VRT account and a Belgian IP address.
- Make sure you are connected to Surfshark’s Belgium server and visit: https://www.vrt.be/vrtnu/
- Login to the portal and enjoy VRT content!
VRT (Belgium) VPNs (3 working alternatives)
As a friendly reminder, platforms are constantly experimenting with new ways to block VPN services. As a result, a VPN service that works well today may be unable to bypass geo-restrictions tomorrow. So, it’s a good idea to keep a list of alternative VPN services on hand in case SurfShark IP addresses are blocked.
While doing this list, I made sure that VPN services met several criteria such as having a server in Belgium, being able to unblock VRT abroad, and providing decent download speed performance for a smooth streaming experience. Only this way, we can have a headache-free VRT streaming experience.
CyberGhost
CyberGhost is a VPN service provider with over 8000 servers in 91 countries. Belgium is one of them, and the company has 204 secure servers in Brussels.
It is important to remember that having more servers means having fewer users per server, which allows us to get better speed from the server we connect to. My most recent testing of CyberGhost’s Brussels server yielded an average download speed of 48.62 Mbps. Such performance will allow you to stream VRT at the highest quality possible.
In addition, if you are concerned about your online traffic, Panama-based CyberGhost is a good option. Furthermore, a single CyberGhost account can support up to 7 simultaneous connections, and the cheapest plan starts at just $2.29 per month.
NordVPN
NordVPN may not be at the top of our list in terms of server coverage, but if you value online security, it is definitely an option to consider. The company prioritizes data privacy and performance, and it has servers in 59 countries worldwide.
The NordVPN app is simple to use and you can connect with just a few clicks. Furthermore, with the 162.21 Mbps download speed provided by NordVPN’s Belgium server, we can surf the web and watch VRT as if we are not connected to a VPN service.
One disadvantage of NordVPN is that it is more expensive than its competitors. A single account can only have six simultaneous connections, and the base plan starts at 3.99$/month.
ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is a popular VPN service for accessing Belgian streaming platforms. The company has been in operation for thirteen years and has servers in 94 countries. ExpressVPN, like its competitors, has servers in Brussels, Belgium.
My most recent speed test with ExpressVPN produced a download speed of 38.67 Mbps from its Belgium server, which is more than enough to watch VRT without buffering.
Finally, ExpressVPN is one of the most expensive VPN service providers available. A single account allows for 5 simultaneous connections and costs $6.67 per month.
Summing up the VRT streaming
Whatever your reason for being abroad, you’ve come to the right place if you’re wondering how to watch VRT outside of Belgium. With a reliable Virtual Private Network (VPN) service, it is simple to stream VRT.
VRT is a popular platform for Flemish community members, offering live channels, radio stations, podcasts, news, sporting events, and much more… VRT is a free platform, but as we learned, the full catalog is only available if you have a Belgian IP address due to copyright and licensing agreements.
We discovered that we could obtain a Belgian IP address by using a reputable VPN service. SurfShark was my personal favorite. Depending on your needs, you can also use CyberGhost, NordVPN, or ExpressVPN.
Enjoy the show!
I’ve been a translator for many years. During this time, geo-restriction has always been the most problematic issue in the many countries I’ve visited. I’m here to tell you about my experience.
