Amidst the money maneuvers by teams and owners in its silly season, NASCAR inked a billion-dollar deal as part of its new media rights deal, bringing in new-generation streaming platforms like Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery. But how does this benefit the sport in the long run, given the rising popularity of its competitor, Formula 1?

Formula 1 has been steadily establishing its foothold in the US, with its average viewership crossing the 1 million mark. Its night race on the Las Vegas strip is a fine example to summarize the promotion’s big American dream that could rival NASCAR and end its dominance. Well, with this new TV deal in place, the stock car racing giant is taking on the challenge head-on. According to sports analysts and pundits, NASCAR is still the undisputed king in the country and intends to stay that way with the new 7.7 billion-dollar TV deal.

The money spinner, NASCAR, takes on the rising F1 tide amidst its dropping viewership numbers

For a long time, NASCAR has been the last word in motorsports on American soil. With its rich history dating from the late 1940s to its loyal fanbase and current exciting Cup, Xfinity, and Truck Series packages, NASCAR has the promotion up in the clouds, reigning supreme, at least in the US. However, that mantle might be at risk with the rising challenge from F1. The open-wheel racing extravaganza, to reach out to more audiences, featured a night race in Sin City, debuting in Las Vegas, Nevada.

According to popular sports journalist and analyst Joe Pompliano, F1 has been climbing the ranks steadily, establishing its foothold in America, crossing the 1.1 million viewership on average against NASCAR’s 2.8 million. But to counter this rising challenge, NASCAR has devised an ingenious plan. Identifying its niche audience and studying the market, NASCAR has struck the chord with a $7.7 billion media rights deal that includes their existing partners Fox and NBC, along with bringing new ones like Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery Sports.

This new agreement will now guarantee a solid return of 1.1 billion dollars annually, which is over 40% of its current revenue returns. Moreover, with this new deal that will be in effect from 2025, running till the end of the 2031 season, NASCAR has played a masterstroke targeting the younger audience given the streaming platforms’ social media influence.

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Now, considering its new partner’s ties with media networks like House of Highlights and Bleacher Report, which have millions of followers, NASCAR’s billion-dollar maneuver will certainly shake up the industry, giving them more options to look at. Above all, despite its downward spiraling viewership owing to its hard-core/old-school fans’ reluctance and the organization’s failure to lure in younger fans, this move will most likely be more than a breather for the organization.

The 2025–2031 television schedules

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In simple terms, the new media rights deal is split between NASCAR’s four partners and its existing partners like Fox and NBC Sports, starting and ending the season. Fox Sports will carry the first 14 events, including one at Daytona International Speedway, followed by Amazon delivering the next 5 events.

TNT Sports, which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery Sports, takes things from there, carrying the next 5 races, followed by NBC Sports taking over, carrying the final 14 events. Following the opening season, the qualifying and practice sessions of the first 19 events will be streamed by Amazon, minus the ones at Busch Light Clash, Daytona, and the All-Star Race.

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Consequently, WBD’s Max Streaming Service will carry all practice and qualifying sessions for the NASCAR Cup Series each season, and truTV will carry the linear TV broadcast of those sessions.