NASCAR\u2019s mind-blowing $7.7 billion broadcasting rights deal with FOX Sports, NBC, Amazon, and TNT Sports was always going to be somewhat of a gamble.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not only had the Cup Series<\/a>\u2019 viewership been steadily declining in recent years, but throw in the lack of a consistent home for the premier series, potentially adding to a sense of confusion for fans on a week-to-week basis, and the fact that the deal included five streaming races for the first time<\/a>, and the seven-year deal was undeniably a calculated risk.<\/p>\n Now, with Hendrick Motorsports\u2019 Kyle Larson<\/a> having been crowned champion for the second time in his already illustrious career, following a dramatic last-gasp pit road pass<\/a> on then-favorite Denny Hamlin<\/a> of Joe Gibbs Racing, NASCAR\u2019s Executive Vice President, and Chief Media and Revenue Officer, Brian Herbst, has reflected on the first year of the broadcast deal.<\/p>\n \u201cWe knew there was going to be some sort of a reset, so we did model out exactly a 14 percent or 15 percent drop in viewership – at least in Year 1 of the deal,\u201d he told Sports Business Journal<\/a>. \u201cThen the expectation was to grow that over time.\u201d<\/p>\n NASCAR\u2019s model may have been pessimistic-sounding, but it was spot on, with the Cup Series seeing a 15 percent drop year on year with an average of 2.5 million viewers in 2025, also marking a new low on record.<\/p>\n