Can you name two sports that are more contrasting than Formula 1 and golf? If there’s one word that can be used to describe F1, it’s ‘speed.’ The essence of the sport is gunning to be the fastest driver to finish a race; it’s about numbers and precision. On the other hand, if there’s one word that could describe golf, it’s ‘slow-paced.’ But isn’t golf also about numbers and precision? And don’t golfers strive to be the fastest player to navigate a course? From the outside, F1 and golf may not look similar at all. But on the inside, there are more than a few things they have in common. Maybe that’s why Netflix came up with The Netflix Cup.

For people who claim to love living in the fast lane (which they do), F1 drivers sure love playing golf. Netflix saw this as an opportunity for a lucrative crossover, and it looks like it’s going to pay off.

The Netflix Cup could help Netflix and F1 & the PGA Tour even further

In 2017, American conglomerate Liberty Media took over F1. It came intending to increase viewership and audiences for the sport. One of the main initiatives it introduced was Netflix’s Drive To Survive. The docuseries has helped bring in so many new fans to the sport, especially from the US. Seeing Drive To Survive’s success, Netflix released a similar show this year for the PGA Tour called Full Swing. Well, that’s been quite successful as well. So Netflix thought, ‘Why not bring the two shows together in a separate event altogether?’ That’s precisely what The Netflix Cup is.

In Netflix’s first-ever live sports event, four PGA golfers and four F1 drivers will come together as pairs to face off in an eight-hole course at the Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas. It’s Lando Norris & Rickie Fowler vs. Carlos Sainz & Justin Thomas vs. Alexander Albon & Max Homa vs. Pierre Gasly & Collin Morikawa. On November 14, the four pairs will compete against each other, the top two of which will play for the first Netflix Cup title. In all honesty, this could be a jackpot for the streaming giant.

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Per a report by Sports Illustrated, “According to a poll conducted by Morning Consult in March 2022, 53% of American F1 fans credit [Drive To Survive] as their entry point to the sport. Similarly, 63% of ‘Full Swing’ viewers reported tuning into a PGA Tour event in the two months following the show’s release, according to a Nielsen Media Research Analysis poll.” The sports’ individual shows have evidently been great for their viewership numbers. If this is anything to go by, The Netflix Cup could be just as good in terms of viewership, if not better. It’ll bring fans of both sports together to watch their stars play for the title. 

Despite Golf ‘Addiction’, Lando Norris Predicted to Fail Against “Lifelong Golfer” Carlos Sainz in ‘The Netflix Cup’

If The Netflix Cup is a success, it’ll help not just the streaming service, but also F1 and golf. Who knows? Maybe F1 fans take a liking to golf, tune into Full Swing, and start watching the PGA Tour? Or golf fans could tune into Drive To Survive, get hooked on, and watch F1. Be that as it may, could there be a possibility that it could go completely wrong for Netflix?

Netflix could also suffer because of the F1-golf crossover

A Drive To Survive and Full Swing crossover may seem like a great idea from the outside, but is it really one? What do F1 fans like about the sport? It’s speed, the adrenaline, and drivers pushing themselves to their limits. When they suddenly have to watch their superhuman-like heroes compete at golf (a sport that’s much, much slower), how would they feel? While the PGA golfers will be playing their own sport, it won’t really be the same one golf fans love. Remember the LIV Golf-PGA Tour debacle? 

There are two things Netflix has to worry about. One, this will be the first time it’s stepping into the sports-streaming foray—an area that’s already over-saturated. Two, and more importantly, it’s risking dampening the integrity of F1 and golf separately. That could also affect the shows that started this in the first place. As reported by Broadcast Now, “Streaming in the US equated to over 19 million users last year, up 27% from 2021. Despite this, subscription numbers are falling, signaling an emphatic end to the streaming boom we saw during COVID-19.”

Even so, Netflix is seeing the event for all that it can be, and it’s doing all it can to get everyone excited about it. Two of its efforts? A pick-up line challenge and words of ‘advice’ to each other.

Pick-up lines or trash-talking?

Dampening the integrity of golf and F1 is not something Netflix is concentrating on. Even before the players and teams hit the green in Vegas, the crossover already took shape. The PGA Tour golfers tried their best to come up with F1- or golf-inspired pick-up lines, in an attempt to “find their perfect match beyond the greens.” The F1 drivers returned the favor. A couple of highlights? Collin Morikawa said,  “I just want someone who knows when to step on the gas, and when to hit the brakes.” After presumably a hundred takes, Lando Norris managed with a straight face, “I’m ruthless on the track, but I’m romantic on the green.”

From there on, the golfers started giving ‘advice’ to the F1 drivers while trash-talking their colleagues, and the F1 drivers did the same. After trash-talking Norris on his birthday, his best friend Carlos Sainz did the same while addressing Norris’ teammate, Rickie Fowler. He said, “I’m sorry, Rickie. I’m sorry. Lando is a great guy to have fun with. He will give you a lot of laughs, but I don’t think he will give you a lot of birdies.” For some who’s called ‘Chili,’ that was pretty cold, Carlos.

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At the end of the day, F1 and golf, to a large extent, are about numbers. But so is Netflix. If The Netflix Cup doesn’t get the numbers Netflix wants, this could very well be the first and last edition of the event. But if it does, the streaming giant has hit the jackpot.