ESPN is dropping out of the Formula 1 business.
According to a report by John Ourand of Puck, the Worldwide Leader has chosen not to renew its current media rights package with Formula 1, despite reports late last year that the network was looking to re-up its deal. ESPN currently pays in the $90 million neighborhood annually for the rights, but F1 is seeking a substantial bump in its next deal.
Per Ourand, the top contenders to pickup the racing circuit are Netflix and NBC. F1 executives reportedly took meetings with both companies during Super Bowl week in New Orleans. NBC carried F1 races from 2012 to 2016 and would be a “natural landing pad” for the circuit, per Ourand, with the sport’s ability to drive Peacock subscriptions.
Netflix is also an interesting candidate. The streamer has blown up the sport’s popularity in the United States with its highly acclaimed Drive to Survive series, but has been selective in its sports rights partnerships thus far.
Ironically, it’s Netflix that has driven up the price for F1 rights stateside by making the sport more popular; so if the streamer wanted in on the circuit’s live events, they only have themselves to blame for the hefty price tag.
ESPN’s decision comes at a time where they are also considering opting out of its current deal with Major League Baseball. Recently, the network has shown restraint in its decisions to renew (or not renew) media rights deals, having passed on deals with the Pac-12 and MLS in the past few years.
F1 falls in the same category. $90 million for a property that only draws 1.1 million viewers per race isn’t exactly a great deal. Paying more than that would make little sense. With MLB, the stakes are even higher: $550 million.
If ESPN’s thinking with F1 is any indication, they’ll be taking a long, hard look at MLB in just a couple weeks time.
