The first Sunday of a Formula 1 season always carries a particular kind of electricity. The paddock gossip starts months before lights-out in Melbourne, but once the engines finally scream, everything resets. The 2025 championship belonged to McLaren’s Lando Norris, a breakthrough year that saw the British driver finally step out of the shadow of perennial contenders like Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. Now the 2026 grid arrives with sweeping regulation changes, new cars, and a field that looks ready to shake up the order again.

But Formula 1 has always been more than the roar of engines at Monaco or the chaos of Turn 1 in Monza. It is also a global broadcast spectacle. And for fans who cannot make it trackside, the question inevitably returns every season: where exactly can you watch the races unfold?

The answer, however, is mostly no, with one fascinating exception. The 2026 Formula 1 season will stream primarily on Apple TV in the United States, which became the sport’s exclusive broadcast partner starting this year. On October 17, 2025, Apple and Formula 1 announced a five-year US media rights agreement.

The deal with is valued at around $700 million, with the tech giant paying about $140 million annually to stream all races on Apple TV starting in 2026. The service costs about $12.99 per month and integrates Formula 1’s own F1 TV Premium experience within the Apple TV ecosystem. Yet Netflix does sneak onto the grid once.

Through a partnership between Apple and Netflix, the 2026 Canadian Grand Prix will be streamed live on both platforms in the US, marking the first time a Formula 1 race is simulcast on Netflix. The event, scheduled for May in Montreal will include the entire race weekend, from practice to the Grand Prix, effectively giving Netflix subscribers a rare live F1 broadcast moment. 

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Even if Netflix is not the main home for live races, the platform remains deeply tied to Formula 1 culture thanks to its hit documentary series.

Season 8 of Formula 1: Drive to Survive premiered on February 27, 2026, continuing the documentary’s tradition of unpacking the chaos behind the championship battle. The eight-episode season revisits the dramatic 2025 campaign, spotlighting McLaren’s rise with Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton’s first year racing for Ferrari, and the intense rivalries shaping the modern grid. 

The series again follows the familiar paddock cast, from Max Verstappen and Norris to Oscar Piastri and Ferrari’s reshaped lineup, while also focusing on rookie drivers entering the sport. Behind the scenes, it captures the off-track politics, team tensions, and career-defining moments that rarely make it into official race broadcasts. For fans, it remains the closest look at what actually happens beyond the television cameras. 

In many ways, Netflix’s show has become the unofficial gateway to Formula 1 fandom. It does not show the race itself, but it reveals the emotional cost of every lap, the strategy calls, the rivalries, and the relentless pressure of a 24-race calendar. So while Netflix may not host most of the 2026 races, it still delivers the narrative heart of the sport. 

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What do you think about this new streaming setup for Formula 1? Would you prefer races on Netflix, or does Apple TV’s dedicated coverage make more sense for the sport? Share your thoughts in the comments.