This month’s Cup Series finale race at Phoenix Raceway was among the most sold-out this season.Pictures
NASCAR had several commercial wins to highlight in its 75th season, as a stable management team has further revitalized the sport, but it still faces questions after a season with lower ratings and unfinished fundamental deals.
The NASCAR Cup Series finished its 36-race 2023 campaign with an average of 2.86 million viewers per event, down 5% from last year’s 3.03 million viewers, as Ryan Blaney of Team Penske won the championship.
NASCAR won’t release specific attendance figures, but said it sold 50% more races in 2023 than in 2022, including its November championship race at Phoenix Raceway in midsummer. The Daytona 500 was a sellout for the eighth year in a row and is expected to be sold out again in 2024.
In recent years, NASCAR has been increasingly aggressive in areas such as schedule innovation and marketing, while also trying to have a back-to-basics philosophy in areas such as executive leadership, product on track and fan experience. Last season, this resulted in the first street race for one of NASCAR’s national series, a bold move in downtown Chicago over the Fourth of July weekend that produced the most-watched NASCAR race on a NBC Sports channel in six years.
Despite some positive dynamics, many challenges await you during the offseason. Here are some of the key bucket list items in this sport:
Search for sponsorship earnings
NASCAR continues to experience some attrition with consumer sponsorship. Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork producer, is the latest to say it will end a long career in NASCAR after 2023 because its driver Aric Almirola is retiring from full-time competition.
“I loved what I heard from (NASCAR President) Steve Phelps and (COO) Steve O’Donnell (at the State of the Sport press conference)… because “They’ve spent so much time taking ownership that we need to get back to taking care of the fans,” said Jim Richards, president and CEO of The Market Share Group, which represents NASCAR sponsors like Reser’s Fine Foods. “If we can start talking about fans again, I think the mainstream brands will come back…(but) we should be concerned that Smithfield won’t come back, that M&M’s won’t come back (in 2022). It’s telling in some ways and I think everyone needs to make an effort to address it.
NASCAR’s main partners include Coca-Cola, Geico, Xfinity and Busch Beer. Although the exact end of their terms is unclear, industry executives are keeping an eye on the future of these deals. For example, Xfinity is also the title sponsor of NASCAR’s secondary series, now called the Xfinity Series, but it may look to move on after 2024 and focus on other areas of the sport to market against.
More star power, storytelling
At that same press conference, Phelps and O’Donnell spoke about the need to generate not only greater star power, but also better NASCAR storytelling. For example, Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson’s favorite line on the track is to throw his car inches off the wall for hours. O’Donnell wonders if NASCAR and its partners have done a good enough job telling this story to impress fans on what they’re seeing.
“If Kyle Larson comes here on Sunday and is able to hit an inch-wide spot on a race track, lap after lap, that’s tough,” O’Donnell said. “Showing that, why he’s so talented, why he’s different from other drivers, is going to be really important for us in the future.”
No more schedule changes
This year’s Chicago street race was the latest move by NASCAR to shake up its schedule in recent years. NASCAR attempted to add a race in Montreal to the 2024 schedule for what would have been only its second Cup Series race in Canada, but negotiations broke down. Instead, the sport will travel to Iowa next year for the first time for its inaugural series. NASCAR is looking at other international options for 2025, although Montreal could remain in play.
Upcoming media rights deal
NASCAR’s 10-year media rights deal with Fox Sports and NBC Sports has an average annual value of $820 million and ends after the 2024 season. All eyes will be on NASCAR’s upcoming media rights deals, which industry executives hope will exceed $1 billion in average annual value.
Fox Sports CEO Lachlan Murdoch has indicated that a renewal with his company is being finalized and that NBC Sports is also expected to retain a package. NASCAR is looking for a streaming partner for several races it has found for a new digital package. Amazon’s Prime Video and Turner Sports are reportedly in the running for this package, and it’s possible they both end up with a share.
“Our media rights, the interest in securing our media rights for 2025 and beyond has exceeded our expectations,” Phelps said at the State of Sports press conference. “Are we reaching the end of this process? We are. Did I think we would have a result sooner? I did it. But we didn’t do it. It’s an incredibly competitive market.
Team Charter Agreement
While teams must wait for NASCAR to complete its media rights agreements before continuing charter negotiations, there has already been a sense in recent weeks that some teams are feeling encouraged about the prospects of a deal.
NASCAR met with teams the week before the championship finale in early November and attempted to allay concerns about its offer, providing clarity on some key points such as how the new funds will be allocated, although NASCAR will not finalize not the conditions until he has finished his media. rights negotiations. It remains to be determined whether the team charters will become permanent.
It is possible that the parties could reach an interim solution, such as renewing the charter system for a longer period than the next television rights agreement, but without the charters being added to NASCAR’s governance system in perpetuity.
