The NASCAR Xfinity Series could soon have a new home, with sources telling John Ourand of Sports Business Journal that the series is likely to become exclusively available on streaming services.
Two companies have demonstrated interest in a deal. One is Amazon Prime Video. The OTT broadcast provider is also said to have interest in a midseason package of NASCAR Cup races as the sport’s media rights deals with FOX and NBC are set to expire at the end of next racing season. Sources told Ourand Amazon would look to use the deal to augment Prime subscriptions within the psychographic of NASCAR racing fans.
There was an exclusive negotiating period between NASCAR, FOX and NBC to potentially attempt to close a new deal. That ended at the beginning of the month though.
FOX and NBC, however, are both expected to renew their media rights contracts. FOX currently broadcasts the first half of the racing season, including the Daytona 500, while NBC broadcasts the second half and subsequent NASCAR playoffs.
Some of the races broadcast by NBC have also been simulcast for consumers to stream on Peacock, marking a change since the last media rights deal began in 2015. Since the conclusion of the exclusive negotiation window, NASCAR executives have been meeting with intersted media and technology companies.
Adding a streaming rights deal would provide NASCAR with an additional revenue stream, likely increasing the current average annual value of its deal (approximately $820 million per year). NASCAR teams are reportedly aiming to earn between $16 and $18 million annually in its next media rights deal, as they would like more than their current 25% share in the contract.
The racing entity is said to prefer a deal centered around broadcast television, but it will consider direct-to-consumer deals and digital distribution as well. A deal, Ourand says, will likely be completed by Independence Day.
