Kasey Kahne Bud Jacket $104. at the NASCAR store
Gentlemen, Start Your Sponsorships by Deborah Tirico
Believe it or not, the second most viewed sporting event on television, after
NFL Football, is The National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). A family-owned and operated business, NASCAR sanctions and governs auto racing
events. NASCAR claims to hold 17 of the top 20 attended sporting events in the U.S., and
boasts 75 million fans who purchase over $3 billion in annual licensed product
sales … yikes! Some marketers consider NASCAR fans the most brand-loyal in all of
sports and as a result, Fortune 500 companies sponsor NASCAR more than any
other motor sport.
The History
Nascar’s home is Daytona Beach ... an area with land speed records dating back to the
bootlegging era of the 1920s. Drivers ran bootleg whiskey out of Appalachia and used small, fast vehicles to
better evade the police. Many would modify their cars for speed, handling and
increased cargo capacity.
1922. After a thrilling chase through the streets of Washington, ... a couple of
bootleggers and their car come to grief at the hands of the Capitol police.
NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon, considered by many to be the “hottie” of the track.
Escaping the Great Depression, mechanic William France, Sr., moved to Daytona
Beach, from Washington, DC. Familiar with the history of the area from the land speed record attempts,
France entered the 1936 Daytona event and finished fifth. He had a notion that
people would enjoy watching stock car racing and knew drivers were often
victimized by unscrupulous promoters who would leave events with the money
before drivers were paid. In 1947, he decided this racing would not grow
without a formal sanctioning organization, rules, a schedule, and a
championship. France and a few influential racers and promoters formed NASCAR
on February 21, 1948. Today, his grandson Brian France is the CEO of the
company.
The three largest racing series sanctioned by NASCAR are the Sprint Cup, the
Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series.
The "NASCAR Sprint Cup Series" is the sport's highest level of professional competition. In the early 1970s,
R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company had been banned from television advertising.
They found a popular and demographically suitable consumer base in NASCAR fans
and engaged NASCAR as a promotional
outlet sponsoring the top level. As a result,
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the Grand National Series became known as
the Winston Cup Series starting in 1971. In
2004, NEXTEL took over sponsorship of
the premier series and formally renamed it
the NEXTEL Cup Series.
The "NASCAR Nationwide Series", the second highest level of professional competition in NASCAR is currently
sponsored
