Apple F1 Channel (2026) [+]
Jul 01 2026
Apple has the US streaming rights for Formula 1 for I think five years. On desktop TV app it's a fairly standard sports broadcast: an hour of commentary mostly on the grid (the starting grid mingling with fans and drivers), about 90 minutes of racing, then an hour post race with interviews, trophy awards, more commentary.
An F1 race also has three practice sessions (about 90 minutes each) and a qualifying session (a couple of hours) which is done to get starting positions (and you can't be too much slower than pole position otherwise you don't qualify to race). All those are broadcast live or streaming later. And for the younger audience there is a kids version of the main race which is still the same footage but using cartoony driver graphics and a colorful race track position display.
Some weekends also have a sprint race which are like half an hour racing and count for points.
On Apple TV hardware and Apple Vision Pro you get more options. Now you're allowed multiple windows. Besides the main race you can get the driver cam for your favorite drivers. There are two status streams, one showing the race track and drive positions real-time and one showing stats like how long the tires have been used as well as more of the communication channel than you get in the race stream. I think iPad also has these options but only one window at a time (maybe two, I forget).
After watching eight races I'd say F1 is much more exciting with the commentary (and I guess all sports are like that). The commentators are enthusiastic and provide a lot of detail of what's going on because really it doesn't look all that exciting just watching the race. There is not much passing in F1 though in aggregate, if you look at cars past the top four leaders or so, there is a lot of passing challenges. But really, it's unusual for a driver to change more than a few spots from their starting position.
The F1 channel also has the usual bonus features and highlights like you see on the MLS channel. They do have Netflix's Drive to Survive season 8 if you don't have Netflix.
Overall F1 is entertaining enough to watch and Apple's F1 Channel is well implemented.
An F1 race also has three practice sessions (about 90 minutes each) and a qualifying session (a couple of hours) which is done to get starting positions (and you can't be too much slower than pole position otherwise you don't qualify to race). All those are broadcast live or streaming later. And for the younger audience there is a kids version of the main race which is still the same footage but using cartoony driver graphics and a colorful race track position display.
Some weekends also have a sprint race which are like half an hour racing and count for points.
On Apple TV hardware and Apple Vision Pro you get more options. Now you're allowed multiple windows. Besides the main race you can get the driver cam for your favorite drivers. There are two status streams, one showing the race track and drive positions real-time and one showing stats like how long the tires have been used as well as more of the communication channel than you get in the race stream. I think iPad also has these options but only one window at a time (maybe two, I forget).
After watching eight races I'd say F1 is much more exciting with the commentary (and I guess all sports are like that). The commentators are enthusiastic and provide a lot of detail of what's going on because really it doesn't look all that exciting just watching the race. There is not much passing in F1 though in aggregate, if you look at cars past the top four leaders or so, there is a lot of passing challenges. But really, it's unusual for a driver to change more than a few spots from their starting position.
The F1 channel also has the usual bonus features and highlights like you see on the MLS channel. They do have Netflix's Drive to Survive season 8 if you don't have Netflix.
Overall F1 is entertaining enough to watch and Apple's F1 Channel is well implemented.