Roku announced its first live sports rights package on Tuesday, marking a notable move for the streaming service as it steps into the highly competitive world of live sports streaming.
Roku and CBS Sports struck a deal to become exclusive U.S. media partners for Formula E, the motorsport championship series for electric racing cars. Starting in January 2024, the Roku Channel will be the new streaming home for live and on-demand Formula E races as well as highlights, replays, race previews, the Formula E docu-series “Unplugged” and more.
The Roku Channel will air 11 races per season, whereas CBS will stream five races per season on linear TV and Paramount+. All races will be available through Roku’s recently launched sports tab.
Notably, The Roku Channel is a free ad-supported streaming service, so fans get to watch 11 Formula E races at no cost. The free offering will make the sport more widely accessible to U.S. viewers.
“This is a powerful new partnership with CBS and Roku that will dramatically increase Formula E’s audience reach and maximize discoverability of our programming in the USA,” Formula E’s chief media officer Aarti Dabas said in a statement. “We value the strength of our ongoing relationship with CBS and are delighted to join forces with Roku and supercharge Formula E content on their market-leading platform.”
Season 10 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship takes place on January 13, 2024, in Mexico City, Mexico.