The Daytona 500’s prestige and popularity are unquestionable. Known as a ‘Crown Jewel event,’ the season-opener has millions tuning in to watch Cup Series stars go head-to-head at the ‘World Center of Racing’. The fixture has a history of intense races and dramatic finishes, making it blockbuster value for every motorsports enthusiast who wants to witness stock car racing action at the highest level. Given the hype and media coverage, TV spots for ‘The Great American’ race are sold out instantly, and that’s exactly what happened this year as well.

With Fox Sports broadcasting the season-opener, the media company seems to have sold out of Sunday’s NASCAR race, often referred to as the Super Bowl of NASCAR. Is this a sign of renewed interest in the stock car racing series advertisement? Time will tell.

Advertisers show renewed interest in NASCAR’s opening race

NASCAR has been struggling with dwindling viewership. According to statistica.com, 18.78 million fans tuned in to watch the 2002 Daytona 500, the highest since the turn of the century. However, despite the odd occasion, the numbers have been declining every year and the 2024 iteration of ‘The Great American Race’ had only 5.96 million viewers. It’s one of the lowest figures ever recorded for the crown-jewel event in almost 25 years, with just 2021 narrowly overtaking with 4.83 million viewers to occupy the top spot. Given the circumstances, Fox Sports selling out its advertisements seems to be a move away from the trends. Could the sport be making a resurgent comeback?

While it’s unclear just how much Fox Sports will make from its advertising revenue, Sports Business Journals suggest that the broadcaster is charging $500,000 for a 30-second spot. All the ads were sold out in December, which is the earliest the network has sold its TV spots in the history of the Daytona 500. According to Brian Herbst, NASCAR EVP and chief media & revenue officer, the renewed interest from advertisers indicates that NASCAR currently has commercial momentum in its favor while leveraging the hot market from Super Bowl LIV has also helped.

The likes of Chipotle, Airbnb, and Meta are expected to feature in advertisements for the Daytona 500 while the likes of Toyota, Chevy, and Chili’s will also have spots in the season-opener. The Japanese manufacturer has purchased a TV spot called ‘Big 3’ which highlights Joe Gibbs Racing, 23XI, and Legacy Motor Club in the NASCAR season-opener. To maximize their revenue, Fox Sports has asked advertisers to run ads in the double-box format, which would allow the race to be broadcasted along with spots, a strategy that seems to have worked well with fans in the past.

While FOX has been coy about their plans for the Daytona 500, reports suggest that the broadcaster has more than tripled the number of double-box ads to ensure viewers get uninterrupted access to the race while pocketing revenue from the spots. The media company’s allocation of Cup Series races has reduced from 2025 onwards, as they have gone from 16 races to 12. Given the circumstances, can they be blamed for making hay while the sun shines?

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FOX to use advanced technology for the Daytona 500

The FOX Sports production is leaving no stone unturned ahead of the NASCAR season-opener. Just like they did for the Super Bowl, the media company will be introducing Cosm super-wide-angle cameras into its race coverage, ensuring that fans have an immersive experience of the prestigious event. The broadcaster will be using a heavy-lift drone with a full-size camera and lens and will use optically generated data provided by NASCAR for its SportsMEDIA Technology (SMT) graphics.

It’s the first time such a technology is being used for a NASCAR race and Cosm has already made use of multiple vantage points at Daytona International Speedway to deliver real-time footage to fans. The domes are 84 feet in diameter and have been previously used in other sporting events such as the UFC, NFL, and the Premier League (soccer). If the experiment at ‘The Great American Race’ proves to be successful, it might pave the way for such technology to be used in other events as well, such as the Coca-Cola 600 or the season-finale at Phoenix Raceway.

It’s the start of a new chapter for NASCAR broadcast. From this year onwards, Cup Series action will be divided amongst FOX Sports, NBC Sports, Amazon Prime Video, and TNT Sports until 2031. Fox Sports coverage will be featured in 1080p and the broadcaster will also produce shows for some of the other networks while providing various feeds for others as well. The excitement is at an all-time high for the Daytona 500. It’s now up to Fox Sports to deliver a blockbuster coverage of the crown jewel event.