Formula 1 has signed Betway as its first official betting operator, with further regional partners expected to follow
Formula 1 has confirmed a multi-year commercial agreement with Super Group‘s Betway, designating the sportsbook as the sport’s first official betting operator ahead of the 2026 season.
The deal covers markets across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Canada and Mexico, and is structured as non-exclusive – meaning Formula 1 will look to sign further regional partners, with the US market being targeted ahead of the Miami Grand Prix.
The announcement was made on 5 March, the eve of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, giving it immediate commercial context as the sport returned to the calendar.
It marks the first time Formula 1 has formalised a relationship with a betting operator at the series level, having previously left such arrangements to individual teams and race promoters.
Building on existing data infrastructure
The arrangement builds on existing infrastructure rather than starting from scratch. ALT Sports Data has held the position of official betting data supplier since February 2025, tasked with generating real-time predictive analytics from the series’ data systems.
The Betway deal extends that commercial layer, adding a licensed operator through which eligible fans aged 18 and over can access in-play markets built on that data feed – covering pit windows, safety car scenarios, and on-track position battles.
By anchoring the product to official, regulated data rather than third-party feeds, Formula 1 has greater oversight of how its competition data is used commercially.
The approach is similar to structures established by other major rights holders. The NFL has an exclusive official data partnership with Genius Sports running through the 2027-28 season, while Football DataCo, the licensing body for the Premier League and English Football League, extended its own equivalent arrangement with Genius Sports through 2029.
In each case, the rights holder chose to route betting data through a contracted partner rather than leave it to the open market, and Formula 1 is now following the same approach.
“As a series with vast and complex data sets, our innovative partnership with Betway allows our adult fans to take a step closer to the strategy and action that makes it so thrilling,” says Jonny Haworth, Director of Commercial Partnerships at Formula 1. “This new product offering based on real-time and regulated data takes Formula 1 into a new cutting-edge dimension.”
A strong commercial platform for Betway
For Betway, the commercial logic is fairly straightforward. Super Group, which operates Betway, reported full-year 2025 revenue of $2.3bn, up 22% year-on-year, with profit before tax of $355.9m and Adjusted EBITDA of $559.5m.
The company has set 2026 revenue guidance of at least $2.55bn, and the Formula 1 partnership gives its Betway brand a high-visibility platform across several of its core growth markets – particularly in Europe and Africa, where the operator has been expanding most aggressively.
Africa alone saw revenue grow 27% year-on-year in 2025, with Botswana identified as a key driver following the company’s launch there in February of that year.
By the third quarter of 2025, Super Group had reached six million monthly active customers – a base the Formula 1 deal will look to both retain and grow through the appeal of live race-weekend markets.
“This partnership reinforces our commitment to sport at the highest level and will ensure our customers have access to some of the most innovative markets during race weekends,” says Neal Menashe, CEO of Super Group.
Scope for expansion beyond the initial agreement
Perhaps the more significant commercial signal in this announcement is what it implies about future deals. The non-exclusive structure means Formula 1 is actively building out a network of regional betting partners, with the Betway agreement serving as the template.
Further operator announcements are expected, with the US market specifically flagged as a priority in the period leading up to the Miami Grand Prix.
The 2026 season provides a commercially useful backdrop for those conversations. New technical regulations have generated considerable media attention, the grid has expanded to 11 constructors with Cadillac‘s entry, and a number of high-profile driver moves have kept the sport prominent across global markets during the off-season.
