News

BBC and Sky to share UK F1 broadcast rights

The BBC and Sky have secured a seven-year deal to share the Formula One (F1) live broadcasting rights in the UK from 2012 until 2018.

Sky will broadcast all the races, as well as the qualifying rounds and practice sessions, while the BBC has the rights to half the races, the qualifiers and ‘key races’ including the British and Monaco Grand Prix, along with the final race of the season.

The BBC has held exclusive rights to the sport since 2009. The new deal marks the first time that F1 won’t be available live on free-to-air TV in the UK.

“With this new deal not only have we delivered significant savings but we have also ensured that through our live and extended highlights coverage all the action continues to be available to licence fee payers,” said BBC Sport director Barbara Slater.

In May, News Corp and Exor announced plans to form a consortium to take control of F1.

Jenni Baker, London