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Apple TV just announced Formula 1 is coming next year, including free races for non-subscribers
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- Apple TV just announced Formula 1 is coming next year, including free races for non-subscribers
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Credit: Photo by Steve Etherington / LAT Images
Apple TV ( RIP to Apple TV Plus ) has had live sports for a while now. The MLS Season Pass is a premium add-on that has been around for a few years now, and MLB games have become a mainstay on the platform. But now, U.S. subscribers are getting Formula 1 races, and this is the live sports offering I've been dying for Apple TV to get.
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F1 to Apple TV: Key Points
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Starting in the 2026 F1 season
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Included free in your Apple TV subscription
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U.S. subscribers only
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Some races and all practice sessions will be available free to U.S. users through the Apple TV app, without an Apple TV subscription
Apple announced today (Oct. 17) that Apple TV will be the exclusive home for Formula 1 races in the U.S., starting in 2026. This means that all practice sessions, qualifying for both Sprints and Grands Prix, Sprint races, and Grand Prix races — which are currently all on ESPN in the U.S. — will now be available exclusively to Apple TV subscribers, with just a few exceptions.
Apple revealed in its announcement that some races and all practice sessions will be available to stream for free in the Apple TV app, at least throughout the 2026 F1 season. F1 TV Premium, which is F1's in-house premium streaming service, will continue to be available in the U.S. and will now be free, but only to those with an Apple TV subscription.
It's important to reiterate that this new perk is strictly for U.S. subscribers and Apple TV app users. Although Apple TV is a global platform, Formula 1 has other homes for its races in other regions, negotiated through separate deals, and this new partnership with Apple changes none of those existing deals. That said, if you're an American abroad, you could use one of the best VPNs to watch F1 on Apple TV next year when you're outside the U.S.
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Apple also announced that it is planning to promote Formula 1 globally in its suite of first-party apps, including Apple News, Apple Maps, Apple Music and Apple Fitness Plus. Apple Sports, Apple's free sports app for iPhone, will also feature live updates for every qualifying session, Sprint race, and Grand Prix during the 2026 F1 season, and will feature real-time leaderboards, season driver and constructor standings, Live Activities to follow on the Lock Screen, and a designated widget for the iPhone Home Screen. Apple said that it plans to announce more production details, product enhancements, etc., in the coming months.
But what about 'Drive to Survive'?
Credit: Dan Vojtech/Netflix
To recap, Apple TV subscribers in the U.S. are getting access to all things F1 as part of their subscription, but not until next year. That means if you want to watch this weekend's U.S. Grand Prix, you'll need to check out our guide on how to watch the United States Grand Prix 2025 .
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Well, I say Apple TV is getting all things F1, but really, it's getting almost all things F1. The races are coming, as is the Brad Pitt drama movie " F1 ," which I dubbed "'Top Gun: Maverick' for cars" earlier this year. But it's not getting "Formula 1: Drive to Survive."
In fact, there's no mention of "Drive to Survive" anywhere in Apple's announcement, but that shouldn't be a surprise. The hit docuseries is a Netflix show, produced by Box to Box Films and available globally. It's technically a British series.
Fans of the Netflix show shouldn't panic, though. While there's no mention of "Drive to Survive" in the press release, this deal only applies to U.S. broadcasts of F1, and therefore shouldn't impact a global property like the Netflix F1 documentary show.
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