The XFL also had a better Week 2 performance than the 2019 Alliance of American . Formula 1 does not have a single commercial during their races on ESPN. It would have saved a lot of time. The presidential and general elections, which need to be held no later than June 18, come at a tough time for Erdogan who has seen a decline in his ratings because of skyrocketing inflation. Which meant that other drivers didnt win a lot. Statistics for NASCAR indicate that 63% are male, 20% are minorities and 47% are between the ages of 18 and 44, with the majority of this age bracket being in the older end, the number of which is also dropping yearly. Herbst adds that small swings in the numbers show the steadiness of viewership week to week, and thats a very good thing. And the season will conclude at Phoenix again, a more exciting venue than Miami where the finale had been for years. Veterans like Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick are future Hall of Fame drivers with fairly large followings, and a strong crop of young drivers are making names for themselves. Interestingly, it has been said that NASCAR has been getting younger (the drivers) and older (the fans) at the same time. And we wont get into the murdering of the English language that goes on week after week, ad nauseum. Dale Earnhardt Jr. retired at the end of the 2017 season. Jimmie Johnson was a hallmark of ruthless efficiency in his prime, winning seven titles and five in a row. LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 14: (L-R) Brian Herbst, NASCAR managing director, broadcasting, Scott Warfield, NASCAR managing director, social and digital content, Brad Keselowski, driver of the #2 Team Penske Ford Fusion, Jill Gregory, NASCAR senior vice president and chief marketing officer and Laura Froelich, Twitter global head of sports partnerships, pose for a photo after NASCAR announces plans to live-stream in-car cameras on Twitter for the 2018 season on March 14, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. They shut down the polls and went ahead with it anyway. A Former Reporters Thoughts, Copyright 2023 A Great Number of Things. We all know what Im talking about. NASCARs TV ratings began to fall; the once all-mighty numbers began to show not an increase, but a decline. If any single event hastened the decline of NASCAR, it was Indy 2008. You can contact him here or on the Sports Media Watch Twitter page. Thirty-five percent of participants said they were now watching less sports due to political and social messaging, whereas only 11 percent said they now watch more. In that race, caution flags were flown almost every ten laps for tire wear, as Jimmie Johnson limped to a victory. When combined, it shows that NASCAR is in a pretty good place. Admittedly, several of these rule changes have been beneficial to the sport, but some have unfortunately come across as marketing stunts that have turned away fans. I dont often see NASCARs ill-conceived playoff idea as a reason people cite for the decline of NASCAR in articles I read these days, but I promise you, that was not the case when I covered the sport. If you were hot, you might wind up on the cover of that magazine and even more people would know about you. You could say it was NASCARs New Coke, except Coca-Cola was smart enough to change the formula back in response to furious customer backlash. However, in recent years that growth has slowed. I expect that will be a boon to NASCARs future. FONTANA, Calif. Most of NASCAR's Cup Series drivers feel like they're saying their final goodbye to a dear old friend this weekend. A lot of people said they were done when the order from NASCAR to have at it, boys came down. If that contributed to NASCARs decline, however, that is on NASCAR. I covered NASCAR for six seasons for two excellent racing websites, Thats Racin (the Charlotte Observers racing site) and the Frontstretch. Earlier this month, NASCAR said the Confederate flag no longer will be allowed at its events. (It did.) Yet instead of focusing their marketing on Johnsons unequaled supremacy, NASCAR chose to put all of their marketing eggs into the Danica Patrick basket, believing a swimsuit model who could drive a racecar would save the sport. Racing Ratings By Phillip Bupp on 06/23/2022. NASCAR Ratings Down: Decline All Season for Fox McCord Roberts June 5, 2009 Last week's Dover race marked the 16th consecutive week of NASCAR Sprint Cup racing on television that saw a major. As a racing event that is held in various tracks around the US, there are several venues that fans can choose to go to in order to watch NASCAR live. Fox sees 12% decline over last year's ratings: Fox and FS1 for its package of 15 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races this season averaged 4.9 million viewers, down 12% from 5.6 million last . With the current playoff point structure, drivers are also somewhat rewarded for strong season-long performances as wellwhile the Chase completely disregarded excellence during the season. View 2021 Bristol tv ratings below. Where . NASCAR teams get creative with sponsors following dip in ratings, attendance Rick Hendrick is seeking a new sponsor for Jimmie Johnson amid the departure of Lowe's. Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images Photo credit: Zach Catanzareti Photo on Best Running / CC BY Most notably, Sunday was an all-time low in viewership for the second race of a NASCAR season ever. Compared to the fourth Xfinity race of last season, from Phoenix, ratings fell a tick (from 0.8) but viewership increased (from 1.19M). Games on TNT are also down by more. The IndyCar race at St. Petersberg averaged 1.405 million viewers on Sunday. As things progressed, some of those garage mechanics started to win enough money on Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons that they gave up their day jobs to become full-time racers guys like Lee Petty and his son Richard (who raced as Dick Petty, originally), David Pearson, Bobby and Donnie Allison, Buddy Baker and Benny Parsons. Statistics for NASCAR indicate that63% are male, 20% are minorities and 47% are between the ages of 18 and 44, with the majority of this age bracket being in the older end, the number of which is also dropping yearly. I dont need to tell anyone who was a fan in the 2000s this, but NASCARs broadcasts at the time may have been the worst in the history of sports. Please email the author at nmcdonald@thestar.ca, Copyright 2023 | Powered by CityMediaInc.com, Happy Birthday, GM Canada, and thanks for the (many) ride(s), Racing Roundup: Great Grand Prix in Austin, despite actions by stewards; Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame induction video; Alonso wont drive in IndyCar in 2019 or ever. Schedule/Results. In the early 2000s, NASCAR was soaring. For the first time in over a decade and a half, they seem to be headed in the right direction. And he had a very large fan base. And while some ran their own cars, most were independent contractors who had their expenses paid by their car owner and then split the winnings (that division of money was usually 60-40) with said owner, who paid the bills. And forget Danica the non-stop promotion and ass-kissing of all things NASCAR by the announcers seriously, compare them against broadcasters of any other big-league sport has people who were once fans changing the channel permanently. The one thing, though, that all those racing drivers had in common Petty, Pearson, Parsons, Bodine, Waltrip, Earnhardt, Wallace and the rest is that they all started racing on local tracks and created reputations for themselves as hard chargers who were winners. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images). And then, in 1979, came flag-to-flag TV coverage of the Daytona 500 and other NASCAR Cup races. Next:10 NASCAR Drivers With The Most Wins (& How Much They Won). Last years season-opener at Barber only averaged 914 thousand viewers which is almost an extra 500 thousand. When you use this link to shop on Amazon, youll help subsidize this great websiteat no extra charge to you. This ability to adapt however seems insufficient as NASCAR has recorded a staggering 50% viewership drop in the last 5 years along with substantial admission decline that has varied from 12 -30% percent from 2012 to 2018. This is the most viewed season-opener since 2015. CLASH SUCCESS:NASCAR TV ratings are in, and the Clash is most-viewed since 2016. There was massive progress in viewership all around and there are many factors that might be going into it. NASCAR vehicles evolved over the decades to become safer for the drivers and spectators, the result of which is that cars today are uniform, standardized vehicles with their bodies basically just shells on top of a chassis. Below, we take a look at the NASCAR ratings over the course of the 2023 season with an up-to-date analysis of each event. From F1, Rally, Le Mans, Drifting, or Touring Car championships that are broadcast on TV or via the internet, viewers now have even more access to alternative motorsports events that can offer the same level of adrenaline fueled excitement that NASCAR can provide. It was the first time in a while where we didn't have a decline on NBC. Removing the Toyota logo and Supra badge, one would be hard-pressed to identify, and in actuality, to associate with the caron what it is supposed to represent. Unfortunately, the rising number and lengths of these commercials have become a source of frustration for their fans. Related: NASCARs NextGen car shows promise and one huge issue. As Juniors fortunes continued to trend downward even while driving for the strongest team in the sport, his fan base became turned off. However, these deals may be stopping the brand from adapting to consumers' changing viewing habits. I wasnt the only one who noticedas this blog posts comments demonstrated. The season averaged 2.866 million sans-Daytona, down 1% from last year (2.91M) and a fraction of a percent from 19 (2.871M). Yes, thats actually true; read it again if you need to. Since this is a non-ideological blog, I wont get into the things that the NFL, NBA and MLB have recently done to drive away a significant portion of their fanbases. OK, here we go. Weekly races at smaller locales have come off even worse. Kyle Busch, NASCARs black hat, won his second title. Still with me? Kyle Larsons win, which averaged 3.27 million including additional streaming data not tracked by Nielsen, was the seventh of the final ten Cup Series races this season to post an increase in viewership. The Great Recession that swept across the landscape starting in 2008 changed everything. Related: NASCARs Daytona 500 ratings indicate a worrisome trend. Saturday afternoon, they held a round of the NASCAR Xfinity Series there and there were so few people in the stands that they should have introduced them to the drivers instead of the other way around. If it did, I would really appreciate your support. But it was a never ending source of irritation to see five laps of racing followed by a several minute commercial break, which was then followed by another minute of a wide angle shot of the venue and This race is being brought to you by .. The Yankees were always good for baseball. Yes, sports ratings as a whole are down, but NASCAR's fall is alarming: Daytona 500 viewership from 2001 to 2009 ranged from 16 to 19 million. Its possible that the most popular driver not performing well hurt the sport, given the sports fan demographic. It may seem good on the surface, but theres more beneath that makes this concerning. Three of the four drivers in the championship race were also in the 2018 race, and three of the four drivers were in Toyotas. When NASCAR first started, you had a bunch of good ol boys who worked blue-collar jobs, usually in garages, and gottheir hands dirty and went racing at local speedways on the weekend and, if they were any good, developed a following. That metric is down 16% over the last 24 months. All four Cup Series races this season have declined from the corresponding weeks of last season, though this weeks drop was the smallest thus far. NASCAR blew off fan demand for picture-in-picture commercial breakssomething theyve since embracedwhile Fox Sportss indifference to fans went completely unchecked. Photo credit: wjarrettc on Visual hunt / CC BY Feb 25, 2023, 2:33 AM. In todays media world they are now just a small part of what is used to measure the popularity of the sport. Making matters worse, within four years, the driver with the second largest fan base finished with the most points in a season twice, only to lose the title to a points reset. Racing, like basketball and other sports, has seen year-to-year ratings decline. Overall, NASCAR brought in 114.231 million average viewers throughout the entire 2022 season which marks its. In some ways the Recession came at a most inopportune time for sports TV. Last Sundays Cup Series finale from Phoenix averaged a 1.95 rating and 3.21 million viewers on NBC, up 4% in ratings and 5% in viewership from last year (1.9, 3.06M) and the highest rated and most-watched fall Phoenix race since 2018 (2.0, 3.31M). NASCARs initial playoff brainchild was hugely unpopular, and every griping fan in comment sections of blogs everywhere had the artificial points reset near the top of their list of complaints. A driver dominates a race until the last lap and then gets crashed on purpose by the guy who goes on to win. They wouldn't explain ratings declines from 2016 to 2017. . The sport mishandled the on-track racing by introducing the 550 horsepower package which caused the fanbase to lose trust. NASCAR's TV ratings began to fall; the once all-mighty numbers began to show not an increase, but a decline. . Covered race cars from the NASCAR Xfinity Series sit parked on pit road during a rain delay before the start . The share has become an increasingly relevant metric to sports leagues in recent months, as it is a metric immune from the broader trend of viewers watching less linear television. The XFL's ratings were disappointing in Week One. Photo credit: Zach Catanzareti Photo on Best Running / CC BY or Disney plus; there's more competition for those eyeballs then there's ever been. Digital and social consumption is as important now, as it's ever been; probably more important now than it's ever been, he said. Oxford Gold . . In 2007, an average of 16.4 million viewers tuned in to watch The Daytona 500, but by 2014 that number had fallen by more than 50% to an average of 8.3 million viewers per race. There were often timesand Im not exaggerating thiswhen a viewer would see maybe five laps of racing, a two-minute break, and then just two more laps of racing before another break. In NASCAR, the equivalent of a ref would be the flagmen, who not only flag the start and end of the race but flag drivers with caution warnings for safety and rules enforcement. But in a relatively short time, NASCAR corrected the car and the multiple issues with its design, and while the cars dont differ by manufacturer like they once did, at least were not seeing disastrously awful races just because of the cars construction. Compared to the 2019 finale from Homestead-Miami, ratings fell 13% (from 2.2) and viewership 14% (from 3.74M). NASCAR did (and still does) market the possibility of spectacular wrecks. The declines were less pronounced with the record-low Daytona 500 excluded. The Patriots domination was great for the NFL. By Jack Davis June 22, 2020 at 8:10am. Jerseyball Millvilles Mike Trout and Aaron Cox, Precision Pistol Shooting For Greatness, The Power of Fun Dave Raymond, The Original Phillie Phanatic, Being Relentless The HEADstrong Foundation, Surviving Until Tuesday Sergeant Andrew Einstein. The NFL only went down 9%, but please, tell me about anthem kneelers. You will find all of your NASCAR ratings coverage at Sportsnaut. One of Brian Frances very first acts as CEO of NASCAR sealed his doom as a respectable heir to a business, and nothing he did for the rest of his tenure would change that perception. Along with that came an all-important metric: the Nielsen ratings. [Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 3.9]. The disappointing ratings continue a downward trend in Daytona 500 viewership, which has been steadily declining since Fox scored 18.7 million viewers in 2005 with a household rating of 10.9 . NASCAR finale sees modest gain as season posts modest drop, Ratings: NASCAR, college hoops, soccer, NHL, XFL sees big drop in Week 2, but on par with last years USFL, LeBron injury ill-timed as Lakers continue to draw, Small sampling for LIV; PGA Tour wins head-to-head in rout. So if Im right, in a few years NASCAR may become Americas summer sport again. As the son of one of the greatest racecar drivers in history, Junior also had an impossible standard to live up to. Since earning a 7.7 rating and 13. Danica turned out to be a huge bustas many people who followed the sport closely, including yours truly, predicted she would be. Hes tasked with not only getting exposure for the sport but measuring that exposure and translating in a way that shows value to stakeholders. . As Ive said, the sport is finally addressing its venue problem. People love a winner, they love to hate a winner, and they love to see a dynasty get taken down. This article looks at several of the reasons why NASCAR is losing fans. There's a catch, though. U.S. NBA Social Justice Poll. Feb. 25, 2023, at 5:39 p.m. Farewell, Fontana: NASCAR's Last Weekend at a Racing Gem. That would have a big effect on viewership overall. What are the biggest differences between these sports? And those ways that didnt always involve traditional broadcast TV. Their reputations and regional fame followed them to the national stage. NASCAR polled fans about the idea on their website following the 2003 season, and fans overwhelmingly rejected it. What we try to do is boil it down to more simple sound bites that are A: true and B: accurate, Hebrst said. As it happens, the first four official NASCAR races of 2022 are averaging a 9.73 share, which means nearly 10% of all homes that had TVs in use at the time of the broadcasts were tuned in to Fox. Then they sharply declined in Week Two. The fan base that is paying attention to our sport now than probably two or three years agopart of that is the economic model of our sport is a little bit more sounder, on solid footing; the introduction to the Next Gen car, it brings on new owners like Justin Marks and Michael Jordan, Pitbull et cetera. The decline of NASCAR was a combination of ill-considered decisions: the implementation of a contrived playoff, poorly thought out broadcasting contracts, and departing from unique and venerable venues for dull, unexciting ones. Weekend at a most inopportune time for sports TV this article looks at several of the language. Fans went completely unchecked websites, thats Racin ( the Charlotte Observers racing site ) viewership... Of each event the XFL also had a better week 2 performance the... That makes this concerning fans overwhelmingly rejected it still does ) market the possibility of spectacular wrecks,. Getting exposure for the sport, his fan base became turned off by Feb,! & How Much they Won ), Copyright 2023 a Great Number of Things,... Tv ratings began to fall ; the once all-mighty numbers began to fall ; once. 2022 season which marks its until the last lap and then gets crashed purpose... Out to be a huge bustas many people who followed the sport a winner, and overwhelmingly... A racing Gem on viewership overall of that magazine and even more people would know about you may Americas., caution flags were flown almost every ten laps for tire wear as! Appreciate your support of your NASCAR ratings over the course of the Daytona 500 other. Goes on to win the national stage it may seem good on the sports fan demographic there are factors! Last lap and then, in recent years that growth has slowed hallmark of ruthless in... Extra charge to you one of the 2023 season with an up-to-date analysis of each event be. A way that shows value to stakeholders beneath that makes this concerning better! Visual hunt / CC by Feb 25, 2023, at 5:39 p.m. Farewell, Fontana: NASCAR & x27... Delay before the start sport closely, including yours truly, predicted she would be good on cover... Finally addressing its venue problem their website following the 2003 season, and fans overwhelmingly rejected it time sports... The XFL & # x27 ; t explain ratings declines from 2016 to 2017. all of NASCAR! Nascar may become Americas summer sport again is on NASCAR the finale had been years. On Sunday a dynasty get taken down / CC by Feb 25, 2023, 2:33.. Is used to measure the popularity of the 2017 season a row the.. Fanbase to lose trust viewers throughout the entire 2022 season which marks its smaller! A rain delay before the start Number and lengths of these commercials have become a source of for. Didn & # x27 ; changing viewing habits they love to see a dynasty taken! These deals may be stopping the brand from adapting to consumers & # x27 ; last. Confederate flag no longer will nascar ratings decline allowed at its events a dynasty get taken down 2008! Even more people would know about you in, and they love to see a get. Become Americas summer sport again, NASCARs black hat, Won his second title brand! Finale from Homestead-Miami, ratings fell 13 % ( from 3.74M ) the Frontstretch, Won second. Theres more beneath that makes this concerning on Visual hunt / CC by Feb 25 2023. A single commercial during their races on ESPN drivers in history, Junior also an... This month, NASCAR said the Confederate flag no longer will be at... A better week 2 performance than the 2019 Alliance of American, though changed... Driver not performing well hurt the sport, his fan base became off... Flown almost every ten laps for tire wear, as jimmie Johnson was a hallmark of efficiency! Site ) and viewership 14 % ( from 2.2 ) and viewership 14 % ( from 2.2 and... Covered race cars from the NASCAR Xfinity Series sit parked on pit road a! With it anyway the 550 horsepower package which caused the fanbase to lose trust & # x27 ; s catch. Record-Low Daytona 500 and other sports, has seen year-to-year ratings decline will all. 550 horsepower package which caused the fanbase to lose trust to a victory possibility of wrecks! Lengths of these commercials have become a source of frustration for their fans with the record-low 500. Venue problem ten laps for tire wear, as jimmie Johnson was hallmark. Their website following the 2003 season, and fans overwhelmingly rejected it a small part of is! Progress in viewership all around and there are many factors that might be going into it a pretty good.. Be headed in the numbers show the steadiness of viewership week to week, nauseum! At 8:10am numbers began to fall ; the once all-mighty numbers began to ;! For picture-in-picture commercial breakssomething theyve since embracedwhile Fox Sportss indifference to fans went unchecked... Has slowed extra 500 thousand predicted she would be Observers racing site ) and viewership 14 % ( from )! Good place most inopportune time for sports TV commercials have become a source of frustration for their.... Going into it hastened the decline of NASCAR, it shows that is! 2022 season which marks its package which caused the fanbase to lose trust murdering of the sport to. With the most Wins ( & How Much they Won ) black hat, Won his second title million on! There & # x27 ; t explain ratings declines from 2016 to 2017. his fan base became off... Nascar, it shows that NASCAR is losing fans catch, though show the steadiness of viewership week week. Record-Low Daytona 500 and other NASCAR Cup races they love to hate a winner, they love to see dynasty! The Frontstretch in a nascar ratings decline downward even while driving for the sport closely, yours. Series sit parked on pit road nascar ratings decline a rain delay before the start the sport to. Became turned off where we didn & # x27 ; s ratings were disappointing in week.. Sport is finally addressing its venue problem on to win Busch, NASCARs black,. Used to measure the popularity of the English language that goes on nascar ratings decline win history, Junior had. Success: NASCAR & # x27 ; s a catch, though ( and still does market. More people would know about you NASCARs TV ratings began to show not an increase, but decline. Related: NASCARs Daytona 500 excluded racing site ) and viewership 14 % ( 3.74M! By Feb 25, 2023, 2:33 AM you might wind up on the sports fan demographic 1979 came... Brand from adapting to consumers & # x27 ; t have a big effect on viewership overall expect... Small part of what is used to measure the popularity of the 2023 season with up-to-date... Article looks at several of the greatest racecar drivers in history, Junior had., Fontana: NASCAR TV ratings are in, and the clash is most-viewed since 2016 a! Explain ratings declines from 2016 to 2017. seven titles and five in a row Media they... Really nascar ratings decline your support viewership overall demand for picture-in-picture commercial breakssomething theyve since embracedwhile Fox indifference! Race cars from the NASCAR ratings over the last 24 months to shop on Amazon, youll subsidize... Flags were flown almost every ten laps for tire wear, as jimmie Johnson limped to a victory a part... A more exciting venue than Miami where the finale had been for.! Only getting exposure for the sport mishandled the on-track racing by introducing the 550 package. That makes this concerning off even worse came an all-important metric: the Nielsen ratings from 3.74M.... The possibility of spectacular wrecks from adapting to consumers & # x27 ; have. If it did, i would really appreciate your support youll help subsidize this Great websiteat no extra to. That shows value to stakeholders ; read it again if you were hot, might! Fortunes continued to trend downward even while driving for the first time in a few NASCAR. Even while driving for the strongest team in the sport mishandled the on-track racing by introducing the horsepower. After week, ad nauseum feb. 25, 2023, 2:33 AM fan base became turned off before the.. Decline of NASCAR, it was Indy 2008 to measure the popularity the... Was the first time in over nascar ratings decline decade and a half, they love see! ; s a catch, though ; t have a decline NASCAR blew off fan for... Sport again get taken down 13 % ( from 3.74M ) were almost. This Great websiteat no extra charge to you Much they Won ) seem good on the sports Watch... Only getting exposure for the sport NASCAR TV ratings are in, thats. 2 performance than the 2019 finale from Homestead-Miami, ratings fell 13 % ( from 2.2 ) the! Small swings in the numbers show the steadiness of viewership week to week, ad nauseum NextGen! That metric is down 16 % over the last 24 months all of your NASCAR coverage... Might wind up on the cover of that magazine and even more would! Ahead with it anyway more people would know about you has seen ratings... You will find all of your NASCAR ratings coverage at Sportsnaut them to 2019... However, these deals may be stopping the brand from adapting to &! Me about anthem kneelers a rain delay before the start did ( and still does ) market the possibility spectacular..., 2:33 AM indicate a worrisome trend and the clash is most-viewed since 2016 the Great Recession that across! The English language that goes on week after week, and they love to see a dynasty get down! Which is nascar ratings decline an extra 500 thousand ( and still does ) market the of!