Apple TV is now the official US broadcaster of Formula 1, in a deal that sees all races covered exclusively on the streamer — plus related events on Apple Music, Apple Fitness, and more.
Following the success of its "F1: the Movie" blockbuster, Apple TV has negotiated exclusive rights to coverage of the real-life race contest beginning with the 2026 season.
"We're thrilled to expand our relationship with Formula 1 and offer Apple TV subscribers in the US front-row access to one of the most exciting and fastest-growing sports on the planet," Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of Services, said in an announcement. "2026 marks a transformative new era for Formula 1, from new teams to new regulations and cars with the best drivers in the world, and we look forward to delivering premium and innovative fan-first coverage to our customers in a way that only Apple can."
There had been doubts over whether Apple would secure the exclusive rights since F1 itself offers F1 TV Premium, which will continue to be available globally. However, within the US, F1 TV Premium will now be solely offered via Apple TV.
"We have a shared vision to bring this amazing sport to our fans in the U.S. and entice new fans through live broadcasts, engaging content, and a year-round approach to keep them hooked," said Stefano Domenicali, Formula 1's president and CEO. "I want to thank Tim Cook, Eddy Cue, and the entire Apple team for their vision and passionate approach to delivering this partnership, and we are looking forward to the next five years together."
Apple says that all practice, qualifying, Sprint sessions and Grands Prix will be available to Apple TV subscribers. There will also be selected races shown for free during each season.
As well as the television coverage, Apple will be providing live updates via its Apple Sports app, with real-time leaderboards and driver statistics.
There will also be F1-related content across Apple Music, Apple Maps, Apple Fitness+, and Apple News.
Apple's road to F1
"We are no strangers to each other, having spent the past three years working together to create 'F1: The Movie'," said F1's Domenicali, "which has already proven to be a huge hit around the world."
Even as that Apple began work on that film, Tim Cook was seen waving the chequered flag at a real-life F1 race in Texas. "F1: The Movie" star Brad Pitt was at that same race, the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix in 2022.
Tim Cook at an F1 Grand Prix in 2022 — image credit: Apple
Initially, Apple's interest in F1 did appear to be focused on the film, although from the start, there was more riding on its success than usual. Following a string of theatrical releases that had done poorly, Apple TV was said to see "F1: the Movie" as its last shot.
The company was said to be looking at streaming-only releases instead of including a more costly but higher-profile theatrical run. Theatrical runs also attract talent, and Apple reneging on a plan to put "Wolfs" in cinemas reportedly led to writer/director Jon Watts to turn down the offer of a sequel.
Apple speeds up
Apple TV had been criticized for poor marketing of its movies. So when it went all-out for "F1" — including handing over part of its annual WWDC to promoting it — the presumption was only that Apple was focused on the film.
It certain was, with Tim Cook and Brad Pitt then gatecrashing a "Severance" event to promote the movie. And with Brad Pitt starring in an Apple Vision Pro special short experience.
Then all of this paid off for Apple as the movie became by far its biggest theatrical success to date. And once that happened, rumors of Apple pursuing real-life F1 drama really began.
The success did also see Apple renewing its interest in films, with reports saying that it wanted to take more control over distribution. But it was sports coverage that Apple was aiming at next.
F1 rights go up for grabs
Disney-owned ESPN used to have the rights to F1 in the States. As part of that ESPN also had the exclusive option on negotiating for the next round of rights — and it failed to do so.
That was in 2024 when the rights were coming up for renewal and it isn't known why ESPN failed to secure it. But it meant that Liberty Media, owners of F1 since 2017, could take the rights to other bidders.
Liberty Media claims that F1 doubled audiences to around 1.1 million on ESPN by the end of its contract. It was then estimated that the next US rights deal would be for around $121 million.
However, that was before both Apple's "F1: The Movie" and Netflix's "Drive to Survive" documentary series popularized the sport in the US.
It's not known which other firms were in negotiation with F1 — if there were any other than Apple. It's also not known what Apple is now paying.
Brad Pitt in "F1"
But the road to the new announcement took some time, and came with some heavy hints. Shortly before the news broke, Eddy Cue said that Apple wanted to solve what he sees as problems with all sports coverage.
"You used to buy one subscription, your cable subscription, and you got pretty much everything they had," he said. "Now there's so many different subscriptions, so I think that needs to be fixed."
It will now be the case that Formula 1 fans will solely need an Apple TV subscription to get every possible aspect of this sport. But multiple subscriptions are likely to continue, especially as Apple has previously lost out in rights battles over such sports as NFL.
