Canal + ratings soar with F1
The appeal of Formula 1 continues to grow, with Netflix and its « Drive to Survive » series playing a role. In any case, Canal + is benefiting greatly, with a record audience at the start of the year, and a high level of regularity among its viewers.
During the first Grand Prix of the season in Bahrain, the Sunday race gathered an average of 1.89 million viewers on Canal +, with a peak of 2.34 million during the event. Airing on free-to-air channels, this is a record audience for Formula 1 on the channel, which seems to be particularly interested in motor sports this season.
Furthermore, it is not only the excitement of the first Grand Prix of the season that has attracted so many people to the channel, as Canal+ continues to attract over a million viewers per Grand Prix since the start of the season. For example, on Sunday afternoon, the Spanish Grand Prix gathered an average of 1.17 million viewers, peaking at 1.26 million. This is a record audience for the Spanish Grand Prix since its broadcast on Canal+ in 2013, the previous record for this race dated back to 2018 and had attracted the interest of 951,000 viewers.
Canal+ acquired the rights to Formula 1 in 2013 and the popularity of this sport continues to grow, especially since the series “Drive to Survive” broadcasted by Netflix since 2019. A renewed interest, French driver Pierre Gasly winning a Grand Prix, and the 2020 season breaking audience records for Canal+, with an average of 962,000 viewers, a 27% increase compared to 2019. The constant growth in their audience share has prompted the channel to intensify the promotion of motor sports this year. With a record set already at the first Grand Prix of the season, 2021 seems poised to break all records again for the encrypted channel.
