Formula 1 has extended its agreement with Australian pay-TV company Foxtel, marking the first time F1’s streaming product has been included in a broadcast deal.
The three-year deal, which will include broadcasts of every practice, qualifying session, and race, is reportedly between $29.9 million and $33.6 million annually.
Beginning in 2023, Formula 1’s over-the-top service will be integrated into Foxtel’s set-top boxes at no extra cost for the first time, adding to the telecommunication platform’s live coverage on Fox Sports and the Kayo streaming platform.
Foxtel Group CEO Patrick Delany said that the partnership, along with Supercars and MotoGP, “confirms Foxtel and Kayo as the home of the very best in Australian and international motorsport.”
- Delany says that Kayo regularly sees more than 200,000 fans stream each Grand Prix.
- He also highlighted that F1 has the “fastest audience growth of any sport across Foxtel and Kayo,” with Foxtel seeing a 41% year-over-year increase in average audiences.
- The 2021 Italian Grand Prix won by Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo — his first win since 2018 — brought in 467,000 viewers on Foxtel.
Australia’s Appeal
The deal comes two weeks before the Australian Grand Prix, which has been absent from Formula 1’s calendar for the last two years due to COVID-19.
The 2019 race reached 514,000 viewers — the most-watched F1 race ever on Foxtel.
