Watch FC Barcelona Vs. Vissel Kobe Live Stream: Preseason Rakuten Cup Live From Japan, Start Time, Preview
FC Barcelona will be preparing to defend their Spanish La Liga title when they play the second of two preseason games in Japan, in the Rakuten Cup preseason competition. Barcelona opened their preseason tune-up campaign with a 2-1 loss to English Premier League side Chelsea FC in Saitama, Japan, per Soccerway. The Spanish champs, who will be going for their third consecutive La Liga title this year, and fifth in the last six seasons, will close out their brief Japanese tour when they take on J1 League club Vissel Kobe — a mid-tier club, albeit one that features some old friends — in a match that will live stream from Kobe.
To find out how to watch a live stream of the preseason Rakuten Cup clash on Tuesday — pitting 26-time Spanish La Liga champions FC Barcelona against last season’s 10th-place J1 League club Vissel Kobe — see the streaming information at the bottom of this article. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. Japan Standard Time at the 30,100-seat Noevir Stadium Kobe — also known as Kobe City Misaki Park Stadium — Hy?go-ku, Kobe, Japan, on Saturday, July 27.
In Spain, kickoff will take place at 11 a.m. Central European Summer Time on Saturday. In the United Kingdom, that kickoff time is set for 10 a.m. British Summer Time. Fans in the United States will need to stay up late, or set an alarm and wake up early, to catch the Barcelona-Kobe live stream, with a start time of 5 a.m. ET, 2 a.m. PT.
Former Barca stars Andres Iniesta, David Villa, and Sergi Samper are all now playing out the latter stages of their careers with the Japanese side — a team coached by former Bayern Munich mainstay Thorsten Fink, according to Bleacher Report
Per CNN, the Vissel Kobe match will give Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde a second look at the club’s prized, new $135 million transfer signing, France and former Atlético Madrid midfielder Antoine Griezmann. The 28-year old, who scored 133 goals in 256 games for the Atléti, inked a five-year deal with the Spanish champions just two weeks ago. But Barcelona’s twin attackers Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez remain idle after wrapping up the Copa America tournament with their national teams earlier this month.
To watch a free live stream of the Saturday FC Barcelona vs. Vissel Kobe Rakuten Cup preseason derby showdown, log in to ESPN for the online streaming service offered by the sports broadcasting giant. Live streams from ESPN and ESPN Deportes, which airs a Spanish-language version of the preseason matchup, are available through the ESPN apps for mobile devices, as well as on set-top streaming boxes, such as the Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire.
To watch the FC Barcelona vs. Vissel Kobe preseason match live stream for free without cable or satellite provider credentials, fans can sign up for a free trial of a multi-channel live TV streaming package such as Sling TV, or YouTube TV. Those internet TV services require credit card information and subscription fees, but they each offer free seven-day trial periods, allowing fans to watch the Barca vs. Vissel Kobe preseason derby match streamed live at no charge.
In the United Kingdom, the live stream is set to be carried by Free Sports TV, while in Spain, Rakuten Sports streams the game live from Japan.
In Japan, WOWOW will carry the live stream on the WOWOW app. For a list of other outlets around the globe that will carry a live stream of the FC Barcelona vs. Vissel Kobe Rakuten Cup match, be sure to check Live Soccer TV.
