Claim under review: Fox might leave NASCAR for the NFL in the future if it feels the latter’s contract is too exorbitant.

Currently, FOX holds the broadcasting rights to NASCAR and the NFL, and it’s paying a significant amount for them. For NASCAR, the broadcasting network is paying $7.7 billion over seven years, which translates to a $1.1 billion-per-year deal.

Fox is paying more than double that, a staggering $24.75 billion over an 11-year period, for its Sunday afternoon NFL package. To break it down, it’s a whopping $2.25 billion per year. The deal runs until 2033 and represents an over 80% increase from its previous deal.

However, according to reports, the NFL may reconsider the valuation of its media rights, even though the current deal runs through 2033. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has hinted that he believes the current deal is “undervalued.” The league can opt out of its domestic rights contracts after the 2029 season.

If the NFL terminates the current contract and increases the media rights package, FOX will have to pay more to retain the rights and will probably have to leave other sports, such as NASCAR or MLB, to free up capital.

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According to Sports Business reporter Daniel Kaplan, Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch recently said that if the NFL’s costs rise, the company will prepare to “rebalance” its sports portfolio to offset potential increases.

“Sounds like NFL’s gain will be another sports property’s loss at Fox,” the insider wrote on X.

FOX and NASCAR, a perplexing pair

Given how FOX has become one of the top broadcasters in the United States, it has expanded into various sports, and as a result, it faces enormous pressure not only to deliver but also to live up to those standards.

However, FOX has been under heavy scrutiny for its choices on multiple occasions, including advertisements between races, prioritizing other events, and more, which has repeatedly infuriated NASCAR fans.

Recently, FOX Sports shifted The Clash from its main channel to FS2 to make way for The Masked Singer, its prime-time series. This not only angered the fans but also NASCAR veteran Kenny Wallace, who slammed the broadcaster.

“NASCAR receives a kick in the gut,” Kenny Wallace said on social media. “Fox TV says, ‘Hey listen, we gave this like really long window. We never thought we’d still be racing.’ And we’re going to take the largest form of motorsports in America—which is NASCAR—we’re gonna take it off air and put on Masked Singer.”

On the other hand, achieving the rights to broadcast the NFL or NASCAR has not been easy, and for sure, not cheap. Given the circumstances, the ongoing decline in viewership also raises questions about FOX’s long-term commitment to NASCAR.

According to reports, NASCAR saw a 14.7% decline in viewership in 2025, averaging 2.45 million throughout the season. The reasons are said to be fragmented viewership (the sport has four broadcasters: FOX, NBC, Amazon Prime, and TNT), the debated playoff format (which NASCAR changed in 2026), and the stage racing system.

However, FOX’s motorsports deals seem safe because its agreement, which includes 14 Cup Series events, including the Daytona 500, runs through 2031. The broadcasting company also recently acquired a stake in Penske Entertainment, which owns IndyCar, so that inventory won’t be going anywhere.

However, it’s important to consider that since there are multiple reasons NASCAR audiences are steadily declining, as a broadcaster and business, FOX is likely to stick with the sport where profits are higher. With that said, it will be interesting to see how it reacts once the NFL restructures its media rights deal.

Verdict: There is no concrete report to confirm whether FOX will drop NASCAR for the NFL at this time.