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NASCAR With a Colossal Move to “LIVE” Stream Xfinity Series on Free Over-The-Air Broadcasting Channel

Published 07/29/2023, 10:55 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

The 2023 NASCAR season is in its last laps as the next season knocks on the door and makes its presence felt. However, before the governing body ushers in the next season, it has made sure that it has laid the groundwork for the next, regarding its broadcasting rights and its media deals.

The authority that is trying to negotiate its economic structure for the next season is functioning under media rights deals that are bound to expire in the 2024 season and move a step forward in the future. In lieu of this, the authorizing body of stock car racing announced on Friday a new development in their broadcasting structure and also a new broadcasting home for the Xfinity Series, starting from the 2025 season onwards.

NASCAR changes the broadcast platform for its mid-tier format, the Xfinity Series

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On Friday, NASCAR, in an official statement keeping its media dealings in consideration, announced its new proposition for the Xfinity races, a mid-tier series. The races from this format, which are televised on FOX and NBC/USA Network, will be available on the CW beginning in the 2025 season. The CW will have exclusive rights to televise the races in this format, including the qualifiers and the practice sessions.

Eric Estepp, on his YouTube channel, spilled the beans on the intricacies of the deal. He stated, “NASCAR has a new TV partner. Today they announced the CW has signed a seven-year, 800 million-dollar deal to exclusively broadcast the NASCAR Xfinity series beginning in 2025.”

“Now that’s a bomb that I have ever seen. This means for the first time ever, all 33 NASCAR Xfinity series will be broadcasted on free over-the-air broadcast television. According to their announcement, the majority of practice and qualifying sessions will also air on the CW and additional content will be available through the CW’s digital platform.”

The partnership would continue until the 2031 season, and each year the CW would pay $115 million for the rights. Moreover, the Xfinity Series generates around 1 million per race, and for the first time in its long-standing history, it will be broadcast over the air for free in order to increase the sport’s reach among the fans, who have easy access to the CW.

This strategy would help the series generate and provide more exposure for sponsorships for the teams and also increase its fanbase among the younger generation. 

Watch this Story: NASCAR Driver Who Got Jeopardized By Kyle Busch Ends Decade-Long Drought As Fans Rejoice

The governing body is set to maintain the production rights to the series.

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Nevertheless, this is not the first time that the broadcasting group has bagged a million-dollar deal in the field of sports. Earlier, the CW had acquired broadcasting rights for televising 50ACC Football and basketball games and also inked a multi-year deal to showcase LIV Golf events.

Speaking to the media after the release of the announcement, the President of the CW, Dennis Miller, expressed, Landing the NASCAR Xfinity Series is a game changer for The CW and our CW Sports division and represents another important building block in our programming strategy.”

Live sports are the most watched television content, and with The CW’s national reach, moving the NASCAR Xfinity Series to The CW will transform and elevate the viewing experience for the series and its fans […] 

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“The CW will have 48 weekends per year of live sports programming. With ubiquitous distribution across one of the nation’s five major broadcast networks, NASCAR Xfinity Series races on The CW will deliver more access for fans and far more revenue opportunities for The CW and its affiliates,” Miller added.

However, on the contrary, the other two media moguls are yet to arrive at a decision and renew their deal with NASCAR, which is set to expire in the next season and was last renewed back in 2012. Nevertheless, the production rights to the races will rest with NASCAR, but in coordination with the CW.

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With that being said, it is to be seen how the governing bodies negotiate with other media houses and arrive at a conclusion. Will these houses renew their deals and hold control of the televising rights, or will new players enter the scene? Well, only time holds the answer to these queries.

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Written by:

Ayantika Maitra

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Ayantika Maitra is a NASCAR Writer at EssentiallySports. It was initially Formula 1 that made her fall in love with the world of motorsports. But quickly, the raw and unfiltered nature of NASCAR is what led her to build an affinity for the Stock Car Racing Series.
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Edited by:

Shivali Nathta