Channel 4 and Sky agree new deal keeping Formula 1® on free to air television

17 September 2019

Motorsport fans will be able to enjoy free to air coverage of Formula 1® after Channel 4 and Sky agreed a new multi-year deal.

The commercial deal means that highlights of all Formula 1® races and live coverage of the Formula 1 British Grand Prix will continue to be shown on Channel 4 following the conclusion of this 2019 Formula 1 season.

Channel 4 CEO Alex Mahon said: “Channel 4 has established itself as the go-to channel for free to air television coverage of Formula 1® and we’re thrilled that motorsport fans will be able to continue to enjoy the excitement of F1 through our highlights of all the races and live coverage of the British Grand Prix.”

The new deal follows a successful 2019 Formula 1 season so far with Channel 4 broadcasting highlights of all 2019 Formula 1 races as well as live coverage of the British GP and the practice and qualifying rounds. Race highlights on Channel 4 have attracted average audiences of 1.7m – and live coverage of the 2019 British Grand Prix peaked at 2.9m and an average of 2.2m viewers.

This latest partnership between Sky and Channel 4 builds on previous collaborations which, most recently, saw the two broadcasters share rights to the final of the Cricket World Cup, enabling the entire nation to celebrate a once-in-a-generation moment of England winning the World Cup on home soil.

The new Formula 1® partnership from 2020 comes as part of a content deal which enables Sky and NOW TV customers to enjoy even more up-front box set stacks from Channel 4 so they can binge-watch all episodes of selected series before they air on Channel 4.

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