While Apple approaches a link of $ 150 million a year with Formula 1, American subscribers to the supply of motorsport streaming, F1 TV, have raised questions about the future of the service.
For $ 85 per year, American customers can currently watch all F1 sessions without advertising via F1 TV, with additional access to team radios, cameras on board and non -racious programming. But in other markets, F1 -detained offers have seen changes after new media partnerships.
The heritage of F1 TV is closely linked to the evolution of the company’s media strategy. And what becomes of the product speaks volumes about the current American ambitions of Liberty Media – as well as Apple’s sporting position. What seems unlikely is that the tict of 3 billions of dollars Titan would see an advantage to host two similar competitive products on its device platforms.
“You don’t want a potential cannibalization of your partner who eats out customers,” said Daniel Cohen, AVP d’Octagon, AVP Global Media Rights, Daniel Cohen. “I think F1 can keep [F1 TV]But it should be a very different type of product for the American market. »»
A year after Liberty Media resumed F1 in 2017, he launched an exaggerated service offering fans live coverage of all race sessions alongside other features. The desire to connect directly with the fans would have been a key reason why F1 ended its diffusion relationship with NBC, signing an agreement with ESPN which did not include rights costs.
With the improvement of social media efforts, the popularity of Netflix Survive And F1 TV, the Sport Was Eager to Become “A More Multimedia Organization – Drather Than Just Focusing on Tv,” As F1 Director of Media Rights Ian Holmes Put It in 2020. At the time, League Executives Across the Sporting World Foresaw A Potential Future where Fans via in-house production Arms and Owned-And-Oopered Apps, With Each Creating A Separate, Netflix-Like Experience for the Premier League, The NFL, The NBA, F1 and so on. But that did not happen.
From 2020, F1 began to connect its consumption offer with its traditional television offers, giving consumers of Sky Germany access to F1 TV as part of their subscriptions. “This can serve as a model for additional markets in the future,” said Frank Arthofer, then the world’s digital chief and F1 licenses at the time.
In the years that followed, F1 TV continued to grow. The F1 TV Pro Tier, which is delivered with live access, was available in 92 territories from last year, the United States being its largest market. The F1 application was appointed the Apple TV application of the year in 2024, and the organizer launched this year a more expensive premium level. The popularity of F1 TV was clear on Reddit, where the users of Formula 1 of the site openly wondered what a new media partnership could mean for the – Expletative and everything service.
He also served as a lever point in media negotiations. In 2023, F1 TV PRO was launched in India after the leaders were disappointed by the offers submitted by local broadcasters for exclusive rights. “People spent all their money in cricket,” said Holmes in 2023. The rich F1 fans base also gives him more flexibility to directly monetize the enthusiasm of the spectator.
“They may afford not to make bad offers on the markets they consider important for growth,” said Cohen. “For example, in Simply Brazil, if they do not get the right offer in Brazil, they will appear F1 TV. If they will not get the right offer in Singapore, they will appear F1 TV.”
The F1 TV fate was very on the table while American bidders have watched the property in recent months. “We will see what the partners want in their offers, and we will see what makes the most meaning for F1,” said Derek Chang, president and chief executive officer of Liberty Media, during a May call with Wall Street analysts.
The approximately $ 150 million per year that Apple would have offered for US F1 rights from 2026 would be an increase of $ 60 million compared to what ESPN is currently paying. In the middle of the 2025 season, ESPN is an average of 1.3 million viewers per race, up 7% compared to the average of the season on the date of 2024. But it remains to be seen what Apple distribution plans look like for the cover of the race.
Apple and F1 representatives refused to comment on the negotiations in progress.
While the first reports suggested that the F1 inventory could be grouped in the Apple TV + service of $ 10 / month, the technological company has taken a different route with the MLS action, putting each game in an offer of $ 99 / year, in parallel with whip cover and other content, with discounts for Apple TV + subscribers and certain games available directly to these customers.
An approach similar to F1 could see many F1 TV flows and features currently and / or extended in a new service supported by Apple.
F1 TV could also continue to offer its own product, just with adjustments to its price and features list. For example, the application could be free, but only to those who pay for Apple’s service (At The agreement of the sky in Germany). Alternatively, F1 could limit the F1 TV library to archival content or focus only on the premium level, offering specific flows for the most committed pure sport. Whatever the route borrowed, a partnership with Apple represents unexplored land.
