Sometimes all the rumors come true: Apple and Formula 1 have announced a new five-year partnership that will make Apple TV the exclusive home of all F1 races in the United States, starting in 2026.
As if Apple didn’t do enough this week after renaming Apple TV+ to Apple TV and then launching three devices, all powered by the new M5 chip, today it’s out in force with some news that will send us all hurtling into the weekend.
And it’s also important news, and a big step for the Cupertino-based tech giant in bolstering its streaming offerings. Apple TV already hosts Friday Night Baseball, the MLS season pass for Major League Soccer games around the world, and countless original movies and TV shows, so F1 joins a growing list.
Here’s the real kicker: no additional subscription will be required beyond the Apple TV subscription. And if you prefer to use F1 TV Premium, you’ll need to sign in with an Apple TV subscription to stream the races there. Also, this is only in the US.
Not to mention that the arrival of F1 racing next year is a quick continuation of F1 The Moviewhich grossed more than $629 million in its theatrical run and arrives on Apple TV on December 12, 2025. Beyond attracting Brad Pitt fans, it could also generate more fans before the actual F1 races hit the platform.
Much like Apple’s approach to the MLS Season Pass, it won’t just offer all F1 races to Apple TV subscribers. It will be all the practice, qualifying, Sprint sessions and Grand Prix throughout the F1 season, and I suspect we will see original programs and documentaries.
Eddy Cue, Senior Vice President of Apple Services, is excited and optimistic: “We are 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.”
“2026 marks a transformative new era for Formula 1, from new teams to new regulations and cars with the world’s best drivers, and we look forward to providing our customers with premium and innovative fan-focused coverage in a way that only Apple can.”
That probably means we’ll see some crazy shots, including multiple camera arrays, and, similar to how Apple filmed a portion of the F1 movie with an iPhone camera sensor, we could see Apple TV deploy the iPhone 17 Pro to the F1 track for live streaming. Apple did that just a few weeks ago with Friday Night Baseball.
Similarly, Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula 1, hinted at a compelling streaming experience: “We have a shared vision of bringing this incredible sport to our fans in the US and attracting new fans through live streams, engaging content and a year-round approach to keeping them engaged. I want to thank Tim Cook, Eddy Cue and the entire Apple team for their vision and passionate approach to achieving this partnership, and we look forward to the next five years. together.”
It seems that Apple, as well as Formula 1, are hoping to level up F1, and it could be in a similar way to how the tech giant has produced Major League Soccer: slick graphics in every match, clean results presented, a wide range of streaming shows, free documentaries, and easy streaming of every match with no blackout dates. While MLS is global, Apple will stream Formula 1 only in the US for at least the next five years.
Apple will also take advantage of its other applications and services to offer the best of F1. You can already track your favorite teams, drivers, and races through Apple Sports, but the release also mentions deeper ties to Apple Music and Apple News.
However, this should be a pretty big step in Apple’s expansion of its streaming offerings, and I hope it brings with it a lot of lessons from MLS, Friday Night Baseball, and other Apple TV content. In terms of viewership, it will probably bring F1 to new audiences and new audiences to the Apple TV platform.
I also hope we see some experimentation with how the stream is captured, perhaps with an iPhone like Friday Night Baseball and with Apple Immersive-compatible cameras to produce more live events for Vision Pro.
Neither Apple nor Formula 1 are ready to share details about streaming or production just yet, but we’ll likely get it in the coming months as we get closer to the 2026 season.
Until then, we’ll be waiting for Tim Cook and company to say, “Lights out and we’re leaving!” and to see if Apple TV and Formula 1 create lightning on the track next year.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to receive news, reviews and opinions from our experts in your feeds. Be sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp also.
