The CW is further expanding its slate of sports properties through a deal with NASCAR.
The Nexstar-owned broadcast network has signed a seven-year deal to become the TV home of the stock car circuit’s Xfinity Series, which features mostly up-and-coming drivers. The CW will begin airing those races in 2025, which will mark the first time the full Xfinity Series slate will run on free, over-the-air television. NASCAR will produce the telecasts via its NASCAR Productions, “in close collaboration” with the network.
The deal is the latest for The CW’s growing sports division, which also has deals with LIV Golf and the Atlantic Coast Conference for live events (college football and men’s and women’s basketball for the latter) and will air Inside the NFL beginning in September.
“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,” network president Dennis Miller said in a statement. “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.”
Miller also noted that when NASCAR comes aboard in 2025, The CW will air live sports programming on 48 weekends each year.
“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 at 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.”
Fox and NBC share rights to NASCAR’s top tier of competition, the Cup Series. The networks’ contract is up after the 2024 season.
Source: Hollywood
