Formula 1 and Sky have confirmed a multi-year rights extension that keeps Sky as the exclusive home of the sport in the UK, Ireland and Italy into the next decade. The UK and Ireland deal runs through the 2034 season. Italy through 2032. Every practice session, qualifying, sprint and Grand Prix stays on Sky Sports, Sky Sport and streaming service NOW, with free-to-air highlights and the British Grand Prix continuing in the UK and the Italian Grand Prix on TV8. The renewal lands on the back of a record-breaking 2025 season in the UK and Ireland and a 25% audience rise in Italy already in 2026.
Key Points: Sky Formula 1 partnership 2034
- Sky extends F1 rights in UK and Ireland through the 2034 season, Italy through 2032
- Total viewing in the UK and Ireland up 90% since Sky became exclusive home of F1 in 2019. Under-35s up 120%. Female viewership more than doubled
- 2025 was the most watched F1 season ever on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland: 162 million viewer hours, 14% growth across the 2023 to 2025 window
- Italy up 25% in 2026. Antonelli’s Chinese Grand Prix win drew 1.2 million viewers live on Sky Italia and a further 1.4 million on TV8
- Full package retained: every practice, qualifying, sprint and Grand Prix. F2, F3, F1 Academy and Porsche Supercup all remain part of Sky’s offering
- F1 Kids stays part of the deal across both markets
The Deal
Sky has been the exclusive home of Formula 1 in the UK and Ireland since 2019. This extension does not change the structure of that arrangement. It locks it in place for a further five seasons in both markets. Italy, where Sky Sport has carried F1 for years, extends through 2032.
For viewers, the package itself barely changes. Every practice session, qualifying, sprint race and Grand Prix broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland, Sky Sport in Italy and streaming platform NOW. Free-to-air access continues in both territories: highlights of every Grand Prix and live coverage of the British Grand Prix in the UK, the Italian Grand Prix live on TV8 in Italy. F2, F3, F1 Academy and Porsche Supercup remain part of the offering across both deals.
The Numbers Behind the Deal
The growth figures are what made this renewal straightforward. Total viewing in the UK and Ireland has risen 90% since 2019. The under-35 audience is up 120%. Female viewership has more than doubled. Those are not normal growth numbers anymore. That is the audience changing shape.
2025 delivered the peak. A record 162 million viewer hours across the season in the UK and Ireland. Growth of 14% across the three seasons from 2023 to 2025. Formula 1 went into these negotiations holding all the leverage.
Italy tells a different version of the same story. Viewership is already up 25% in the opening rounds of 2026, driven by Ferrari’s title challenge and the emergence of Kimi Antonelli. His first Formula 1 victory at the Chinese Grand Prix drew 1.2 million viewers live on Sky Italia. A further 1.4 million watched on TV8. For a 19-year-old in his second season, that is the kind of audience pull that shapes broadcast deals.
What Both Sides Said
“Sky has always been a dedicated, trusted, and passionate partner since we began our relationship many years ago. Their world leading approach to live broadcasting, content creation, and behind-the-scenes analysis led by a truly amazing group of on-screen talent has made the difference in continuing to grow our sport in the UK, Ireland, and Italy and I am delighted we will be taking our partnership into the next decade.”
Stefano Domenicali, President & CEO, Formula 1
“We’re proud of the role we’ve played in supporting the sport’s growth through world-class storytelling, innovation and long-term investment. This new agreement secures Sky as the home of Formula 1 for years to come, as the sport enters an exciting era with more British talent on the grid and rising stars like Kimi Antonelli.”
Dana Strong, Group CEO, Sky
Coffee Corner Take
This deal was always going to happen. The audience numbers left no room for doubt. 90% growth in the UK and Ireland since 2019. A record 2025 season. Italy accelerating into 2026 on the back of Antonelli and Ferrari. When the data looks like that, you do not walk away from the table.
The length is what stands out. Through 2034 in the UK and Ireland is not a cautious renewal. It is a decade-long bet that the sport’s current trajectory holds. Liberty Media and Sky are both reading the same thing: F1’s audience is younger than it has ever been, broader than it has ever been, and still growing. Locking that in now, before the next rights cycle becomes competitive, is exactly what both sides needed.
The Italian extension is the part that does not get enough attention. A 25% audience rise already in 2026, driven by a 19-year-old from Bologna who has just won back-to-back grands prix and leads the championship. Sky Italia saw 1.2 million viewers watch that Chinese Grand Prix live. TV8 added another 1.4 million. Italy has not had a live championship contender since Alonso’s era and the numbers show exactly what happens when it does. Running the deal through 2032 captures the full arc of whatever Antonelli becomes.
For fans in the UK and Ireland the picture is unchanged. Sky stays exclusive. The British Grand Prix stays free-to-air. The full ladder from F1 Academy through to Formula 1 stays in one place. Whether the price of access shifts across a decade-long deal is a different conversation. The sport is not getting cheaper to watch. But the product Sky is selling has never been stronger.
Formula1.com
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