The rise of in-play betting during F1 races: What It means for motorsport coverage?

It is this change which is driving brands to the paddock when it comes to betting. As Sauber raced as the Stake F1 Team throughout 2024 and 2025 before transitioning to the Audi Revolut F1 Team for 2026/

The betting brand's high-profile stint demonstrated how deeply the gambling industry has embedded itself into the sport's commercial fabric. Stake remains an active platform in the F1 betting ecosystem, for fans looking to engage directly with race markets, the ability to  use Stake promo code to bet on F1 is a direct product of this deeper integration between motorsport and the gambling industry.

F1 in-play betting involves betting money once a session or race has begun and odds are subject to fluctuation throughout the race. It differs from a pre-race bet on the winner in that a new market can be created each lap.

Common bets in a typical F1 book include the next car to get to the start/finish line, whether or not a safety car will be deployed, who will lap the fastest, who will win a head-to-head race or who will finish within points. A slow stop, lock-up or sudden rain shower or virtual safety car can cause prices to fluctuate in seconds.

That speed is a function of timing of feeds, historical models and risk management. The higher the quality of the data, the more confident operators can be in price of live sports betting when fans are reading the race story.

The most obvious difference from the F1 broadcast is the absence of a scrolling odds board. It's the era of predictive storytelling. Information on pit-stop windows, tyre performance, alternative strategies, likely battles and overtake difficulty is now explained with graphics. These tools assist the casual fan to comprehend why a driver is staying out, is pitching early, or saving tyres. They also provide tips to bettors that fit the micro-markets.

This overlap is intentional. This is not the first time that F1 have sold their data. In 2018, Formula 1, ISG and Sportradar concluded a landmark three-way, $100 million deal to develop live in-play betting products and give fans new ways to engage with race weekends, and in 2025, ALT Sports Data was appointed as F1's Official Betting Data Supplier.Betway became Formula 1's first Official Betting Operator from the start of the 2026 season, following a multi-year deal announced in March 2026 between F1 and Super Group. The logic is related. Faster data, more reasons to stay engaged, clearer probabilities, and the sportsbook.

There's been more subdued commentary. F1 pundits continue to view racing in terms of strategy, championships consequences and driver prowess but not specific odds. However, the language of probability is all around us. The analytical grammar used by commentators when talking about the opportunity for an undercut, the probability of rain or a driver catching a competitor is the same as that driving the live markets.

The most obvious case in point is financial backing from Stake, with their brand becoming the official identity of an F1 outfit, and this is what they did. Despite some markets needing alternative branding of Kick Sauber under local laws on gambling advertising, the association attracted attention through race coverage, social clips, launch events and through merchandise.

It has a greater impact than one team. From teams, races and official F1 partnerships, betting brands have sprung up, using motorsport coverage as a direct marketing channel. Questions that media pose and business models of the sponsors can influence activations for fans. A livery launch, then, might alternatively be coverage of sporting events gambling trends.

Engagement is the strongest argument for in-play wager. F1 races can have extended periods of stability where races in the middle of the pack are very active. For some, a live bet on a pit sequence or the fastest lap on a safety-car period adds an extra interest to information they may not otherwise have. This represents additional revenue for teams and media partners, and content hooks for F1.

The issue is that the nature of game betting might impact the game viewing culture. When every pit stop is a wager, it can sometimes become the default way of watching. The issue is that F1 is watched by a worldwide audience which includes younger fans, those who are not serious about the sport, and those who are susceptible to problem gambling.

Integrity is another issue. There are lots of factors in motorsport, such as penalties, mechanical failures and more, that can cause markets to shift dramatically. Effective data governance, betting surveillance, clear regulations, and comprehensive restrictions on insider trading are vital. So are clear responsible gambling messages, age-gating and adherence to national advertising regulations. F1 will not be spared of public interest concerns, as was demonstrated by the Netherlands, where the Dutch Gambling Authority (KSA) banned Stake.com's trackside branding at Zandvoort as early as 2024, forcing Sauber to race as 'Kick Sauber' before extending this to a total ban on all gambling sponsorships at Dutch sporting events from July 2025, affecting every F1 team carrying a betting partner's logo.

The subsequent stage might be more individualised. Broadcasters could provide optional second-screen feeds, augmented-reality overlays or app-based dashboards that could display tyre wear, pit deltas and real-time probabilities. Regulated betting partners can leverage the same data to provide quicker, more targeted race markets.

It is unlikely that live odds will be available on mainstream F1 coverage, but will be dictated by law, broadcaster policy and fan tolerance. The rules can be tightened in some markets and loosened in others, but with responsible gambling measures made apparent.

The sustainable way is separation, which is transparent. Covering data-rich laps can help increase understanding without being a sales pitch. In-play betting is now a commercial part of Formula 1, but it's the sport's trustworthiness that lies at the heart of its worth: fans have to trust in the truthfulness of the race, the coverage and the fact that the show is greater than the bet.