The CW Network, which has been accumulating sports programming under new owner Nexstar Media Group, said it will become the exclusive home to the NASCAR Xfinity racing series starting in 2025.
The deal is reportedly worth $800 million over 7 years, extending through the 2031 season.
NASCAR Xfinity Series races are currently televised by Fox, FS1, NBC and USA Network. Amazon and other streaming providers had been thought to be strong contenders to land the racing series.
“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,” The CW president Dennis Miller said.
“Live sports are the most watched television content and with The CW’s national reach, moving NASCAR Xfinity Series to The CW will transform and elevate the viewing experience for the series and its fans,” he said.
Miller ticked off the sports programming the network has added in the past few months including Inside the NFL, ACC college football and basketball, LIV Golf, and the motorsports documentary series 100 Days to Indy.
“Beginning in 2025, The CW will have 48 weekends per year of live sports programming,“ Miller said. “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.”
The CW is part of a growing movement of sports programming moving from cable, which has been losing subscribers, to broadcast as streaming takes a bigger share of entertainment viewing.
“CW’s leadership shared a compelling vision for cultivating the next generation of NASCAR talent by bringing the NASCAR Xfinity Series exclusively to broadcast television and we are thrilled for the opportunity to partner with them,” said Brian Herbst, senior VP, media and productions for NASCAR. “With more than one million viewers tuning in each week to see NASCAR’s future stars battle some of its biggest names at our most legendary tracks, NASCAR Xfinity Series consistently delivers the moments that excite current fans and create new fans of our great sport.”
Nexstar’s Fox and NBC affiliates already carry NASCAR races.
The company has a “deep understanding of NASCAR’s value. NASCAR’s loyal and passionate fan base and adrenaline-fueled races will provide CW stations with highly valuable live sports content that can deliver big audiences,” said Andy Alformd, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division. “These exciting events resonate in our local markets and with a local Nexstar station within driving distance of each and every NASCAR market, we are uniquely suited to drive attendance, viewership and revenues through local coverage, fan engagement, promotion and value-added marketing solutions for advertisers and brands.”
