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Sky will air a drone racing series on UK TV later this year as part of the company’s $1 million (£760,000) investment in the Drone Racing League (DRL).

The ten-part series, starting in October, will be shown on Sky Sports Mix – an 'eclectic sports channel' that also shows golf, cricket and women’s football. Before the series gets properly underway, the channel will also air a one-off introduction to drone racing on Friday September 16 at 4AM.


Sky Sports is additionally partnering with the DRL to bring live drone events to the UK, with the country’s first professional drone race to be held in an unnamed but ‘iconic’ venue in London. The ten episodes will cover all five races from the 2016 DRL season, including a winner-takes-all World Championship finale.

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In the DRL races, pilots fly custom-designed racing craft at speeds approaching 120mph through courses complete with LED hoops and obstacles. Pilots wear first-person-view goggles to fly their craft, giving them a drone-eye view as they race through venues such as the Miami Dolphins stadium in the US.

The Drone Racing League has already raised $8 million (£6.06 million) from a range of investors including the owner of the Miami Dolphins and Muse frontman Matt Bellamy. DRL races are currently broadcast in the US on the sports network ESPN.

Dubai hosted the inaugural Drone Grand Prix this year, a race won by 15-year-old British pilot Luke Bannister. Bannister will be speaking at this year's Next Generation conference World Drone Prix

The DRL’s CEO and founder, Nick Horbaczewski said: "Having a distribution deal and strategic partnerships with Sky will bring DRL to tens of millions of viewers.


"We believe we can truly grow a global franchise around this futuristic, high-speed racing sport."

Its investment in the DRL isn’t Sky’s first foray into futuristic sports this year either. Earlier this summer Sky and ITV launched the UK’s only 24-hour esports TV channel, GINX eSports. The channel, which is broadcast to 37 million homes around the world, broadcasts competitive gaming events including FIFA, Counter Strike and Halo tournaments.

British drone-racing champion Luke Bannister, who took first prize at the Word Drone Grand Prix in Dubai, is speaking at WIRED Next Generation 2016. The one-day event on November 5 will bring together switched-on and engaged young people aged 12 - 18 with some of the most exciting innovators around today.