The F1 2026 season gets underway this week with the Australian Grand Prix and one broadcaster is showing all the action live.
Formula 1 returns this week as the 2026 season gets underway and all the action will be live on one channel. Lando Norris will defend his title for the first time against Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 6-8.
This marks the first of 24 rounds this season, which runs through to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on December 4-6. There’s some major changes this year, including the addition of a new track on the racing calendar.
In September, the drivers will take to the streets of Madrid after Imola was removed from the schedule. Meanwhile, American brand Cadillac joins the fray and takes the total number of teams to 11 for the first time in a decade.
Formula 1 fans can watch all 24 race weekends throughout the season live on Sky Sports, which shows every practice, qualifier and race on the Sky Sports F1 channel. Those without a Sky subscription can get access with the provider’s flagship sports package, the £35 Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle.
This gives access to nine dedicated sports channels including F1 and Premier League, as well as around 100 regular channels, Netflix and discovery+. Customers opting for the £42 Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle will also get 35 extra channels, with Disney+, HBO Max and Hayu access added at no extra cost from March.
Sky’s discounted Formula 1 package
Formula 1 fans can watch every practice, qualifier and race live with Sky’s Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle in an introductory deal that saves £336.
As well as nine Sky Sports channels, this includes around 100 regular channels and free subscriptions to Netflix and Discovery+.
Existing Sky customers can add Sky Sports F1 to their package for less as a monthly subscription to the channel has just dropped from £20 to £15 per month. This is a 31-day rolling contract that can be cancelled anytime with 31 days’ notice.
Elsewhere, Virgin Media offers Sky Sports access too with its £52.99 Sport bundle. Although more expensive than Sky, it comes with more than 200 channels plus 362Mbps fibre broadband.
However, customers should keep in mind that Sky and Virgin will increase their prices each year, meaning bills will rise at least twice during the 24-month contracts. Here’s the full schedule for F1 2026:
Formula 1 2026 race schedule
- Australia: March 6-8
- China: March 13-15
- Japan: March 27-29
- Bahrain: April 10-12
- Saudi Arabia: April 17-19
- Miami: May 1-3
- Canada: May 22-24
- Monaco: June 5-7
- Barcelona: June 12-14
- Austria: June 26-28
- Great Britain: July 3-5
- Belgium: July 17-19
- Hungary: July 24-26
- Netherlands: August 21-23
- Italy: September 4-6
- Madrid: September 11-13
- Azerbaijan: September 24-26
- Singapore: October 9-11
- USA: October 23-25
- Mexico: Oct 30-Nov 1
- Brazil: November 6-8
- Las Vegas: November 19-21
- Qatar: November 27-29
- Abu Dhabi: December 4-6