New Fox TV deal sure to swell NASCAR bank accounts
But what about the consumer and the NASCAR fan? Well, they’re happy that NASCAR took a huge step toward keeping the sport stable. But they must take a wait-and-see approach before having an all-out celebration over NASCAR’s new deal with Fox, which will continue to televise Sprint Cup races through 2022.
Fans want to know what will happen to their beloved Speed network and its popular NASCAR programming. They want to know if they can get a split-screen where they can continue watching the action on the track while commercials are on.
They want to know if they’ll be able to watch the races online (for free). They want to know whether Fox will continue having two Waltrips on their telecasts.
Those answers don’t come in a news release. Those answers come with performance.
NASCAR fans should spend Monday just being happy. The fact that Fox reportedly is spending $300 million a year from 2015-2022 on NASCAR is huge.
That is a 36 percent increase from the current 2007-2014 deal. That means more money for tracks, which get 65 percent of the TV money, and for the teams, which get 25 percent.
That should help keep ticket prices down and possibly mean that race teams can rely less on corporate sponsorship and more on race winnings.
Also, no matter how bad the economy gets, this deal is locked in through 2022. As attendance has dwindled since 2007, the television deal has kept tracks that host Sprint Cup races afloat.
In 2007, International Speedway Corporation, which has rights to 19 Cup points races, took in $253.7 million in total ticket revenue. Last year, it took in $144.4 million. It’s TV take? In 2011 it was $204.5 million and growing every year thanks to the structure of the deal.
That’s why the new contract is such a big deal for the sport. Sporting News