Apple believes its Formula 1 coverage should start well before the lights go out on the grid. Talking at the Autosport Business Exchange London, Jim DeLorenzo, Apple’s global head of sports, is aiming to turn a race weekend into a week-long experience.
2026 sees Apple take on the broadcast rights for the United States after a successful foray into the championship through the F1 movie. According to the sports chief, the company has high expectations of itself.
"One of the great things about the movie, which has been obviously a huge worldwide success - that part’s been great - but really the important thing for us, what got us interested in the live rights, was being able to work with F1, work with the teams, work with the drivers," DeLorenzo said.
"Because for us - and we talk about this all the time - we are not a transactional company. We really try and focus on the partnership angle of everything.”
He continued: “So seeing that as we were making the movie gave us more confidence. Then when the live rights opportunity came up to be able to pursue this...
“And sports is really important for our customers, which is why it’s important for us."
Apple is aiming to increase engagement for fans, fuelled by an excitement that's building from the fans of the championship within its own organisation.
"Obviously having Cadillac come in, having Ford come in is going to be great because I think we all think at Apple that there's a ton of room to grow in the United States for Formula 1 and having big brands, big companies who are based in the United States can only help."
He added: "As we're looking to grow the sport in the US, that means in part we have to demystify it, right? For the new fans, the potential fans that are out there - and that's where we wanna partner with everybody and try and figure out the best way to do that.
"There's a certain education aspect of this for the new fans while at the same time earning and then keeping the trust of the existing fans. So you have to have that balance between the two.
"But certainly, one of the things we want to do is create an experience that extends the entire week, not just on race day."
Apple is yet to specify how it will approach non-race days or which parts of the company's ecosystem will be used for this, but more details will hopefully be revealed as we enter the 2026 season.
