With Apple reportedly poised to acquire U.S. rights to Formula 1, guest contributor Jessie Karangu takes a look at the reasons why the partnership could work out for both parties.
Late last Friday, news broke that F1 is likely to change television homes from ESPN to Apple TV+. While the sides involved in this deal have yet to confirm the news, an exclusive streaming deal with Apple will inevitably mean lesser reach than that of incumbent ESPN.
Despite this valid concern, there are other aspects of a potential deal that could potentially benefit both parties.
The Tech
For F1, a deal with Apple would provide the opportunity to be intimately involved with the tech giant’s state of the art technology. As Puck has reported, there is a possibility Apple could experiment with its coverage to differentiate itself from previous broadcasters with ideas such as “placing the custom camera system used for the (F1 Movie) in actual F1 cars.” Puck reporter Dylan Byers also speculated “one could imagine a 360-degree camera providing new experiences for Apple Vision Pro headsets.” Providing immersive experiences that transform the way people watch sports on TV could be one way to hook more casual fans. Viral entertainment venue COSM has sold out multiple events in multiple cities by providing immersive experiences viewers could not get at home. A similar experience from the comfort of a viewer’s couch, and at a far cheaper price than going to an actual race, could be one way to draw more attention to the sport and perhaps provide the boost VR home viewership has long needed.
Beyond experimental technology, Apple could also deploy the interactive elements that have already been implemented during live streamed sporting events in the past. Interactive ads have become commonplace for viewers of “Thursday Night Football” on Amazon. The tech behemoth reported a ten percent increase in viewer engagement with interactive ads during Black Friday compared to the season before. Amazon was also able to attract new brands with that unique form of advertising as 40 percent of the companies participating were new advertisers, according to Deadline.
Providing the ability to offer interactive ads creates a deeper relationship with customers for Apple and gives advertisers a new way to reach viewers that ESPN may not be able to consistently offer. Engagement with such ads could also increase because it’s much harder to take full commercial breaks during F1 races compared to other traditional American sports like baseball, basketball and football. In F1, interactive ads could be displayed over top of races, particularly if a driver being spotlighted is also sponsored by the same brand. Alternatively, advertisers could also play their ads side-by-side, as is common in racing telecasts.
The Synergies
F1 and Apple already have a pre-existing relationship after co-producing Apple’s feature film about the series (“F1”) — arguably the company’s first box office hit. The two firms already understand how to convey races to fans in a way that helps grow the sport, and assuming a sequel isn’t out of the question, the opportunities for cross-promotion only help the chances of that happening.
Apple could also benefit from this deal as well. As a new-ish entrant in the sports streaming industrial complex, Apple TV+ doesn’t have the years of experience and relationship building with the advertising world that the ESPN’s and NBC’s of the world have. Apple could use the prestige of F1 races to invite advertisers and sponsors to experience the thrill of short circuit racing and entice them to move advertising dollars over to their streaming service. Beyond advertisers, Apple could offer hospitality packages and fan experiences that convince potential viewers to subscribe to the streaming service and reduce churn due to the perks being offered, similarly to what Apple already does for MLS season ticket holders who can subscribe to “Season Pass” for free.
The Audience
F1 also has an audience that is accustomed to online environments. The league has a second screen option known as F1 TV that viewers often use to watch specific drivers during races. The app also offers qualifying and practice sessions and provides interactive elements for viewers to participate in while watching the race. Furthermore, it’s rare for F1 fans to hear about their sport during major sports talk shows that air on TV such as “First Take.” To hear any type of analysis at all, fans rely on European broadcasters such as Sky Sports who reliably post content on YouTube. ESPN’s own F1 analysis shows are also almost exclusively available online. Adapting to Apple TV+ will be an easier transition since it’s already an established behavior. Fans may not be happy adding another bill but they won’t struggle with figuring out how to find the race online.
Unlike MLB and MLS, F1 has more recognizable faces and household names among the average casual sports fan between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. Because of the Netflix boost via “Drive to Survive,” a behind the scenes look at how F1 operates, fans may be more inclined to get real time updates on the characters they follow on the show. If these same fans are already streaming a show about F1, as mentioned above, the transition to streaming an F1 race shouldn’t be as difficult because it’s an established behavior fans already associate with this sport.
The data also work in Apple and the F1’s favor. According to a recent survey by Civic Science, Gen Z and millennials are the sport’s biggest fan bases. A whopping 45 percent of Gen Z and 31 percent of millennials told Civic Science that they follow F1 either somewhat or very closely, and a separate study by F1 and the Motorsport Network found that 70% of Gen Z respondents engage with F1 content daily while 39% of Gen Z respondents and 41% of surveyed women say they’re more likely to consider an F1 sponsor product. These findings may be hard to square with the relatively small F1 television audience, but it is also the case that linear television viewership may not be the best indicator of fandom among young demographics. Assuming these studies are anything close to accurate, the findings show that F1 is skewing younger — suggesting that a streaming transition won’t be as difficult as for older-skewing MLB. The F1 brand is niche enough yet big enough to bring a supportive crowd that follows it wherever it goes.
The Rest
F1 races have another advantage over the MLB and MLS in that they are held in a scarce window. There is only one race per week. Baseball fans don’t have to subscribe to Apple TV+ to keep track of the sport as ESPN, TBS, Roku and Fox also broadcast games. MLS games air on Univision, Fox and Xfinity systems alongside Apple. These F1 races will reportedly only air on Apple and because of their scarcity, feel more like a can’t miss exclusive event that’s worth gaining access to.
Finally, for Apple TV+, building a sports library could have the same effect on non-sports programming as for Peacock. After airing exclusive NFL games in the past two seasons, NBC’s streamer has been able to capture millions of subscribers who have signed up for the first time. After the games ended, Peacock has been able to keep the subscribers because of its library of original content. In 2024, it was believed at least 21 percent of Peacock’s subscribers stayed to watch NBC original shows as well as reality TV. The additional subscribers, originally acquired through sporting events, generated 13.7% of its total subscriber revenue. Hypothetically, when Apple’s sports season is over, subscribers would continue to stay on to enjoy the service’s critically acclaimed television programming.
