BTCC announces extension to ITV broadcast deal

British Touring Car Championship organiser TOCA has announced a new deal with ITV that will see the series remain on free-to-air television until at least the end of the 2026 season.

The new five-season deal, which comes into play from 2022, will see the series continue to benefit from at least seven hours of live coverage on each race day on ITV4, with races being available to watch on demand on the ITV Hub.

Qualifying will also continue to air on ITV.com as part of the deal, which will see the relationship between series and broadcaster run to an impressive 25 seasons.

“I’m immensely proud of the great and close partnership that we have with ITV,” series boss Alan Gow said. “Their commitment and enthusiasm to bring the BTCC to as wide an audience as possible is absolutely unrivalled.

“It was vital to me that the BTCC maintained its vast live free-to-air coverage. Simply, we want the maximum amount of people to be able to watch our great racing – it’s the bedrock of our enormous popularity. So hiding our championship away behind a paywall would only have the exact opposite effect.

“With the new hybrid regulations and our fantastic broadcasting coverage now locked into place right through to the end of 2026, it provides the solid foundation on which all our teams and partners can base, and build, their involvement.

“I’m not sure how many major motorsport championships in the world have an unbroken (and in fact increasing) free-to-air broadcasting relationship spanning a quarter of a century with the same broadcaster, but by my reckoning it’s probably only one… the iconic British Touring Car Championship.”