ESPN’s aid in boosting Formula One’s popularity in the U.S. may have cost the network the sport’s long-term media rights.
With ESPN’s F1 deal expiring after the 2025 season, the media company has reportedly dropped out of the running for U.S. rights in 2026 and beyond, according to Puck News. ESPN is entering the final season of a three-year deal worth up to $90 million annually.
Last week F1 held meetings, per Puck, with NBC Sports, which carried F1 from 2012 to 2017, and Netflix, which next month will release Season 7 of Drive to Survive—the docuseries that skyrocketed F1’s American popularity several years ago.
ESPN declined to comment when contacted by Front Office Sports. But as early as last August, the network indicated that it knew there would be rival bids when negotiations started to ramp up this year.
“There was [competition] the last time around, and it’s kind of the downside of doing what we do really well and bringing a larger audience to these events and the success we’ve added,” John Suchenski, ESPN’s director of programming and acquisitions, told FOS. “Unfortunately, the nature of the business is to create more demand and more competition.”
F1’s 2024 season averaged 1.1 million viewers across ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC, tying the same number from last year, but down compared to a record 1.21 million viewers per race in 2022.
The 2025 F1 schedule once again includes three U.S. races in Austin, Las Vegas, and Miami. There are also races in American-friendly time zones in Brazil, Canada, and Mexico, while the rest of the calendar plays out in other countries that typically make for early-morning or middle-of-the-night race start times in the U.S.
