Apple TV makes tracks to reach US Formula One streaming deal
Buoyed by the success of its eponymously-titled F1 move, Apple appears to have dusted off its historically speculated plans to bid for streaming rights for Formula One and is once again in the running to secure those rights.
The Financial Times (arguably the best real newspaper left in the UK) tells us that Apple now wants to purchase the streaming rights to Formula One.
All in the game
This speculation isn’t new – it was around back in 2023, when reports told us Apple was building a $2 billion deal to secure streaming rights to Formula One races. At that time the company was also working on its movie, and it is widely known that Apple’s leadership does like its fast cars – Eddy Cue sits on the board at Ferrari, for example.
What is new is that a deal is on the table once again, with the company seeking US streaming rights, a bidding war in which it competes with Disney subsidiary, ESPN.
Disney currently pays $85m for those rights, according to the FT, with Formula 1 also charging fans directly. Analysts think the value of those rights has accelerated since then, estimating they will be worth c.$121m a year today.
A sport of champions?
Formula 1 viewership on ESPN doubled from 554,000/race in 2018 to around 1.1 million per race in 2024, and this continues to increase. In the first 10 events this year, F1 averaged 1.3mn viewers.
Snagging F1 streaming rights makes sense. Not only is the sport attracting growing numbers in the US but it is becoming particularly popular among women, with the 16-24 year old age group also becoming fans. US audiences seem particularly engaged, with a digitally-savvy fanbase many of whom engage with Formula One content daily. They’re also committed to the sport, with 94% saying they intend to follow it even five years from now.
That kind of young-skewing audience may be just what the doctor ordered for Apple TV.
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