Building on the momentum from its F1 film and expanding live sports offerings, Apple announced on Friday that it has inked a five-year partnership with Formula 1 to bring races to its streaming service starting in 2026.
The motorsports addition is exclusive for Apple TV streaming subscribers in the US. Fans will be able to watch extensive F1 coverage, including Grand Prix, Sprint events and practice and qualifying sessions.
F1's 2026 season is slated to kick off next March, and Apple says a selection of free races and practice events will also air within the Apple TV app (not to be confused with Apple TV, the streaming service). Viewers will be able to watch the action in English or Spanish.
Don't miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.
Beyond the racing broadcasts, F1 will appear across Apple's entire ecosystem, including Apple News, Apple Fitness Plus, Apple Music and Apple Maps, similar to the promo push seen for F1 The Movie. The free Apple Sports app will roll out live updates for every race during the season and feature up-to-the-minute leaderboard stats, along with "season driver and constructor standings, live activities to follow on the lock screen and a designated widget for the iPhone home screen."
If you're wondering about the F1 TV app, your Apple TV streaming subscription will include F1 TV Premium in the US at no extra charge. The offering -- which features multiview, live in-car cameras and team radios -- is for new and existing F1 TV subscribers, said Ian Holmes, F1's director of media rights, during a press briefing about the partnership.
With the growing popularity of F1, its CEO Stefano Domenicali, alongside Apple Senior VP of Services Eddy Cue, expressed excitement over the new collaboration and boosting its US audience.
"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," said Cue.
"This is an incredibly exciting partnership for Apple and the whole of Formula 1 that will ensure we can continue to maximize our growth potential in the US with the right content and innovative distribution channels," Domenicali said in a statement.
An Apple TV subscription costs $13 per month in the US, but it's also available as a bundle with Comcast's StreamSaver and the new Peacock package.