NASCAR Cup Series Sees Significant Decline in 2025 Television Viewership Amidst Media Rights Evolution

Charlotte, NC – The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season concluded with a notable 14 percent year-over-year decrease in average television ratings, a trend that NASCAR officials had anticipated due to a significant shift in broadcast distribution. The championship race at Phoenix Raceway, which crowned its winner on NBC, attracted 2.77 million viewers, a slight dip from the 2.9 million viewers who tuned in for the 2024 season finale. Overall, the 2024 season averaged 2.892 million viewers, representing a one percent increase from 2023, while the 2025 season averaged 2.476 million viewers.

NASCAR President Steve Phelps acknowledged these figures during his recent "State of the Sport" press conference, attributing the decline to a deliberate strategic move away from traditional broadcast television towards cable channels and streaming platforms. This shift included the introduction of five races broadcast exclusively on Amazon’s Prime Video.

"When the season started, because of the distribution changes to be less broadcast heavy and more cable heavy and streaming, we knew we were going to have a reset," Phelps stated. "We had projected that that reset and told everyone in our industry that reset would be between 14 percent and 15 percent in Cup."

Despite the overall dip, Phelps expressed optimism regarding the performance of the races aired on Amazon Prime Video. These five events averaged 2.16 million viewers, a figure that exceeded expectations and was lauded for its production quality. The partnership with Prime Video and Turner Sports, alongside incumbent broadcasters FOX and NBC, marked a significant evolution in NASCAR’s media rights strategy.

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"Everyone just raised their game," Phelps commented. "Amazon’s production was tremendous. Turner Sports was tremendous. NBC already had a high bar, right? The Turner numbers were slightly softer than we thought they would be, slightly, but in line with the projections."

However, races broadcast on USA Network frequently struggled to surpass the one million viewer mark. Phelps candidly addressed this aspect, noting, "I would say the cable portion of the NBC package has been a little softer than we had expected." He expressed confidence in a rebound for races aired on the main NBC broadcast channel, anticipating a "decent rating" for the upcoming Sunday broadcast.

Looking ahead, Phelps reiterated NASCAR’s long-term growth strategy, emphasizing the sport’s inherent appeal. "The expectation moving forward, now that we have had the reset, is that we are going to grow. We’re going to grow because we have the best racing in the world, our stars are going to be more out there, we’re creating better content, all the things that make fandom." He concluded, "Are we concerned about where the ratings are? No, it’s exactly where we thought they’d be."

Team owner Brad Keselowski offered a nuanced perspective on the viewership trends. "I think NASCAR and everyone in the industry knew there would be some transition, but we didn’t know what it would be," Keselowski told Motorsport.com. "I think we knew there would be a transition with the viewership habits of our fans. I will tell you I was pleasantly surprised by the performance of Amazon and streaming races. Conversely, I was disappointed in the races we had on cable and broadcast has done what we thought it would do." He added, "I guess we’re fixed on this for the next six years so we’ll have to make the most of it."

In contrast to the Cup Series, the NASCAR Xfinity Series experienced a significant surge in viewership, achieving its best television ratings in four years. This success is largely attributed to the move of all its races to broadcast television on The CW Network. The series averaged over one million viewers throughout the season, with 1,034,000 viewers tuning in on average, marking a 10 percent increase from the previous year when races were primarily aired on FS1 and USA Network.

The Xfinity Series finale also delivered an impressive performance, drawing 1,015,000 viewers on a Saturday afternoon, a time slot often challenged by major sporting events such as college football and the World Series.

Phelps lauded the strategic decision to place the Xfinity Series on The CW. "We also told them we probably have a double-digit increase in Xfinity," Phelps said. He further elaborated on the performance of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, noting that its distribution remained largely consistent on FS1 and select FOX broadcasts, with ratings reflecting that stability.

"Right now as we sit, our ratings in Cup are down 14 percent, exactly what we predicted," Phelps reiterated. "I think the FOX portion of the season was really strong in terms of how they did from a ratings perspective. I think that Xfinity exceeded a lot of kind of experts’ opinions about what their audience would be. We surmised that the audience makeup of Amazon would be younger, and it was by about six years. Then the production value that FOX and NBC have had traditionally, amazing."

The distribution changes for the 2025 season involved a complex arrangement across multiple platforms:

• FOX Sports: Broadcasted the initial portion of the Cup Series season, typically on the FOX broadcast network.
• NBC Sports: Carried the latter half of the Cup Series season, with races split between the NBC broadcast network and the USA Network cable channel.
• Amazon Prime Video: A new entrant, exclusively streamed five Cup Series races during the middle of the season. This marked a significant step into sports streaming for the e-commerce giant.
• Turner Sports: Collaborated with NBC Sports, contributing to the broadcast of certain Cup Series events.
• The CW Network: Became the primary broadcast home for the entire NASCAR Xfinity Series season, a move designed to increase accessibility and viewership for the series.
• FS1: Continued to be a primary broadcast partner for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, alongside some FOX broadcasts.

This multi-platform approach, while intended to reach diverse audience segments and adapt to evolving media consumption habits, has undoubtedly contributed to the fluctuation in traditional television ratings. The data suggests a growing audience for streaming platforms, while cable viewership has faced challenges in maintaining previous levels. NASCAR’s strategy appears to be a long-term play, aiming to cultivate a broader and potentially younger fanbase through a diversified media presence, even if it means short-term adjustments in established rating metrics. The focus now shifts to how these partnerships will evolve and whether the projected growth in viewership will materialize in the coming seasons.

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