No Camera No Action: The Story of Formula 1’s Crazy Broadcasting History

Introduction

Formula 1 is the world’s largest motorsport, with a massive fanbase across the globe; therefore, broadcasting rights are in high demand and are of a high cost (Sturm, D., 2023), particularly in Britain; however, this was not the case initially.

Early Broadcasting History & The Battle of the BBC and ITV

he first ever televised Formula 1 race in the UK was the British Grand Prix in 1953, which, as seen below, was televised in black and white, as was everything in those times. Very few races were televised between 1950 and 1980. Most of the season’s races were televised as highlights through the leading broadcasting companies in the UK, the BBC and ITV, whilst certain races were never televised at all.

This changed in 1979, with the BBC gaining exclusive broadcasting rights for the sport and the legendary Murray Walker to commentate. Formula 1’s popularity rapidly grew from this deal, alongside its coverage increase. Many races were still shown as highlights. However, there was a massive increase in sports coverage, especially from the 1982 season onwards, with the Raceday broadcast lengths shown below. This continued until 1995, when the BBC was expected to agree on another deal with Formula 1 for broadcasting rights. However, a surprise announcement was made, with ITV snatching up a £60 Million contract to broadcast the sport for four years, starting from the 1997 Formula 1 season. This surprise broadcasting change, however, improved the coverage of the sport drastically, providing a more on-site presence compared to the BBC, allowing for a more detailed, in-depth analysis during the Grand Prix weekends whilst holding onto Murray Walker and introducing Martin Brundle, who, to this day is still one of the most famous and popular Formula 1 commentator and pundit for the sport, especially for his pre-race grid walks.

Modern Day Formula 1 Coverage

ITV kept hold of the broadcasting rights until the end of the 2008 season, where, once again, after a twelve-year absence, the BBC returned as the primary broadcast holder from 2009 on a five-year deal, introducing new faces to host the shows, including Jake Humphrey, Eddie Jordan, and the newly retired David Coulthard. This was the first time every single session throughout a grand prix weekend was shown live. Although the deal was supposed to be Five years long, this quickly changed at the beginning of the 2012 season, with the BBC agreeing on a deal with Sky Sports. This deal resulted in Sky Sports taking over as the main channel for Formula 1, showing all Grand Prix weekends live, whilst the BBC ended up with ten races a season live. This change occurred due to the license fee settlement between the BBC and the Government in late 2010. The BBC kept hold of this deal until they decided to leave the sport altogether for the second time at the end of the 2015 season. Channel 4 took over their position; however, most of the Grand Prix they showed were in the form of highlights, with the British Grand Prix in 2023 being the only live weekend they showed throughout the season.

Today and the Future of Formula 1 Broadcasting

This brings us to today, with Sky Sports still being the leading broadcaster for Formula 1, with their dedicated channel, “Sky Sports F1”, being the place to be for all things F1. Sky is seemingly determined to keep hold of the sport due to their current deal expiring in 2029 whilst fighting off competition such as Apple, who have been rumoured to try to gain exclusive broadcasting rights. Regarding Channel 4, they still show highlights for every Formula 1 event; however, it is uncertain if they will continue to broadcast the sport for much longer with their current deal with Sky expiring in 2026, and there is very little heard in relation to extending this deal. Formula 1 will always be able to captivate and increase its already worldwide fanbase, and whoever holds the broadcasting rights for this luxurious sport should see themselves as lucky.

Please see the sources used for this post below:

Ascari, A., Fangio, J.M. and Farina, G. (1953). 1953 British Grand Prix. [online] IMDb. Available at: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6763944/ [Accessed 11 Jan. 2024].

Driving.co.uk from The Sunday Times. (2023). Apple in Sky’s slipstream for exclusive F1 TV rights with reported multi-billion dollar deal. [online] Available at: https://www.driving.co.uk/news/motor-sport/apple-in-skys-slipstream-for-exclusive-f1-tv-rights-with-reported-multi-billion-dollar-deal/ [Accessed 15 Jan. 2024].

Motorsport Broadcasting. (2012). History. [online] Available at: https://motorsportbroadcasting.com/history/#:~:text=Between%201950%20and%201980%2C%20races.

Nelson, D. (2023). Analysing the rise and fall of Formula 1’s free-to-air presence in the UK. [online] Motorsport Broadcasting. Available at: https://motorsportbroadcasting.com/2023/01/03/revealed-the-rise-and-fall-of-formula-1s-free-to-air-presence-in-the-uk/.

Sturm, D., (2023). Formula One as Television. In The History and Politics of Motor Racing: Lives in the Fast Lane (pp. 387-411). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

http://www.gpblog.com. (2023). How much do Sky Sports F1 pay for the broadcast rights in the UK? [online] Available at: https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/230779/how-much-do-sky-sports-f1-pay-for-the-broadcast-rights-in-the-uk.html.