2017 NASCAR Season - Television Ratings Thread

Conover said:
...Still, NASCAR will continue on, with further reduced costs and salaries, until the business model fits the demand. The biggest challenge coming will be the next TV contract. It will be far less $$ if these trends don't reverse immediately. Then everyone will get big haircuts. Even so, racing will go on and I will be going and watching.
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That's a big BINGO!
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
NASCAR's television viewers are rightsizing. It's a long arduous process that will take years to complete but we will all be just fine. Well, most of us anyway.
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.......and they all lived happily every after.......:D

Nascar has a 2 pronged problem with the first being a fan base that shrinks at a steady yet alarming rate annually. The bigger problem for Nascar is that its fan base is aging out as its demographic gets older and older with each passing year. No one wants to discuss or tackle that issue other than to say things like "I don't believe it" or "the sampling size is too small." Every week @FLRacingFan posts what I consider to be very interesting information as to how all sorts of programming is faring in the marketplace and every week the numbers are unkind to Nascar.

The average age of a Nascar fan is 58 while NFL and NHL fans come in at 49, the NBA at 42 and MLS at 40. The general population is aging but Nascar fans are leading the charge so until that problem is alleviated good things are not in Nascar's future.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
.......and they all lived happily every after.......:D
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This is true, for many of us. I don't have a dog in this fight. My only association with the sport is watching it. I'm not a prospective sponsor nor do I sell advertising to anyone that wishes to sponsor the series so mine is only a passing interest with ratings and the like. I think it's interesting to see the direction that it's going by looking at the numbers but I don't give it a lot of thought. I'm really only concerned with my interest in the sport. I'm okay with this sport going back to the way it was if that were to happen. I've been on a long ride with NASCAR. Pre-televised races through the present day. I've been able to watch the rise of this sport to its peak interest and I'm still there to watch it get back to what is probably its proper place among my fellow sports fans.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
This is true, for many of us. I don't have a dog in this fight. My only association with the sport is watching it. I'm not a prospective sponsor nor do I sell advertising to anyone that wishes to sponsor the series so mine is only a passing interest with ratings and the like. I think it's interesting to see the direction that it's going by looking at the numbers but I don't give it a lot of thought. I'm really only concerned with my interest in the sport. I'm okay with this sport going back to the way it was if that were to happen. I've been on a long ride with NASCAR. Pre-televised races through the present day. I've been able to watch the rise of this sport to its peak interest and I'm still there to watch it get back to what is probably its proper place among my fellow sports fans.
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trying to portray a future of doom and gloom(fear) is what I have a problem with.
 
StandOnIt said:
trying to portray a future of doom and gloom(fear) is what I have a problem with.
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Hey, someone's got to be there to remind us each and every week that we're getting older. Not that my back isn't already telling me that. The constant reminder of my generations limited time on this earth has me appreciating every future day that much more. :cool:
 
Matters are currently so polarized here that we don't discuss facts that may matter to those who are interested in the business side of NASCAR so much as we argue sides and feelings. However, according to the Nielsen and SBJ studies, the average age of NASCAR fans has increased at a higher rate than any other sport over the past ten years. While nearly all sports have inevitably seen increases due the sheer size of the aging Baby Boomer generation, NASCAR being +9 while the NFL and MLB are +4 and the NBA is +2 is not "It's always been that way."

These demographic trends do matter. It isn't just that most advertisers vastly prioritize viewers under 50 (they do). It's that the trends suggest which sports are best positioned to increase or maintain their fanbases and which are at risk to see them dwindle. Nobody who is serious about the subject would dispute that the NBA and MLS appear to be on solid ground with much growth potential in the next two decades, because they have by far the youngest audiences of major sports. Meanwhile the NHL can't be thrilled that their average age was 33 in 2000 and 49 as of 2016. This suggests that the sport has simply maintained the same aging fans, but isn't attracting young fans to replace those who depart.

I wish the relationship with Monster were going better and I hope it improves. I thought it was possible they could be the right 'face' of the sport with the kind of marketing machine that could address some of these concerns. So far both sides seem far too hamstrung and tentative to accomplish much.
 
Michfan said:
NASCAR, like golf, has always traditionally had an older fanbase...this isn't breaking news.
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Another bone of contention. That may or may not be a good demographic. I'm sure it is reasonably accurate. What isn't reported and shows up in pre and post race photos are the amount of younger people who are involved in the sport. Nascar isn't sitting on their hands. This year kids 12 and under are free to many Xfinity and truck races at most of the tracks. It would be different if Nascar wasn't trying to do anything about what is going on. Other sports this year are posting record breaking losses in attendance and viewership and they unlike Nascar derive their income almost solely from broadcasting contracts..Contracts that have performance clauses in them. The stick n ball herd appear to be jumping over to soccer and Basketball.
 
^ I agree that NASCAR isn't sitting on their hands and doing nothing. They know this matters for sure.
 
@Michfan if you could provide a link to the information about NASCAR traditionally having an older fan base I would be much obliged.
 
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StandOnIt said:
Another bone of contention. That may or may not be a good demographic. I'm sure it is reasonably accurate. What isn't reported and shows up in pre and post race photos are the amount of younger people who are involved in the sport. Nascar isn't sitting on their hands. This year kids 12 and under are free to many Xfinity and truck races at most of the tracks. It would be different if Nascar wasn't trying to do anything about what is going on. Other sports this year are posting record breaking losses in attendance and viewership and they unlike Nascar derive their income almost solely from broadcasting contracts..Contracts that have performance clauses in them. The stick n ball herd appear to be jumping over to soccer and Basketball.
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NASCAR may be trying to attain younger fans but it has not worked. If I am a parent I care very much about my child's effort in trying to achieve. In business I don't give a flying fig about how much someone tries as all I care about is results.
 
gnomesayin said:
Matters are currently so polarized here that we don't discuss facts that may matter to those who are interested in the business side of NASCAR so much as we argue sides and feelings. However, according to the Nielsen and SBJ studies, the average age of NASCAR fans has increased at a higher rate than any other sport over the past ten years. While nearly all sports have inevitably seen increases due the sheer size of the aging Baby Boomer generation, NASCAR being +9 while the NFL and MLB are +4 and the NBA is +2 is not "It's always been that way."
....................
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IMO too many people take things personally when talking about things like poor ratings and attendance and rush to defend the indefensible. NASCAR's ratings and attendance slide is not emotional or dramatic as it is just something that has happened. The low ratings and attendance should not rob one person of one second of enjoyment they derive from the series.
 
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Well I pretty much take the doom and gloom B.S. with a grain of salt and let folks see for themselves 22 tracks with increased attendance this year also
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There are 23 tracks on the Cup schedule. 22 of them had increased attendance, really? I thought that neither ISC nor SMI release attendance figures anymore and that they may only filter out later through earnings reports and such.
 
gnomesayin said:
There are 23 tracks on the Cup schedule. 22 of them had increased attendance, really? I thought that neither ISC nor SMI release attendance figures anymore and that they may only filter out later through earnings reports and such.
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it is in the The more you know thread.
 
Mopardh9 said:
Yeh but how many seats did they eliminate in the last 5 years?
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*sigh* talking about THIS year attendance increases and the visual proof of the ages of Nascar fans that some figures say is all over the place from average 50 thru as old as the late 50's it just depends on which article you believe.. You are talking about a different subject while using my photos that are about an entirely different topic.
 
Oh OK. Yeah I remember that from Brian's presser. It seems that he meant 22 races out of the 36 or 38. That would be encouraging news if true. If he's the lone source on that, I'll wait for some actual evidence to be released or guess that they found an individual section at 22 races with more people in it vs. 2016. Just kidding!
 
StandOnIt said:
*sigh* talking about THIS year attendance increases and the visual proof of the ages of Nascar fans that some figures say is all over the place from average 50 thru as old as the late 50's it just depends on which article you believe.. You are talking about a different subject while using my photos that are about an entirely different topic.
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No I'm not, if they eliminated 20k seats from last year they can say attendance as a percentage was up.
 
gnomesayin said:
There are 23 tracks on the Cup schedule. 22 of them had increased attendance, really? I thought that neither ISC nor SMI release attendance figures anymore and that they may only filter out later through earnings reports and such.
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Brian France tells us that the racing has never been better than today and his stooge tells us that most NASCAR fans live in California and now race attendance has gone up.

StandOnIt said:
*sigh* talking about THIS year attendance increases and the visual proof of the ages of Nascar fans that some figures say is all over the place from average 50 thru as old as the late 50's it just depends on which article you believe.. You are talking about a different subject while using my photos that are about an entirely different topic.
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Why not just enjoy the racing and ignore the stuff you don't care for? There is so much evidence that NASCAR is shrinking from things like driver salaries, lack of sponsors, a dubious title sponsor situation, less fans watching from home and lower attendance. I get it that this sort of thing can be a bummer for good people so I can't see it being worth the time and energy to attempt to refute the irrefutable.

Regarding the older age of the NASCAR fan it is what the advertisers believe thT counts not what you or I think of it.
 
Declining yearly attendance, viewership and sponsorship and the denial of all those facts by NASCAR cheerleaders reminds me of how quickly things could spread from what started out as a small problem:

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The biggest concern for NASCAR should be the rapidly aging demographic. Many of us won't be around to watch in a decade or two.
 
Skoalbandit33 said:
.......and they all lived happily every after.......:D

Nascar has a 2 pronged problem with the first being a fan base that shrinks at a steady yet alarming rate annually. The bigger problem for Nascar is that its fan base is aging out as its demographic gets older and older with each passing year. No one wants to discuss or tackle that issue other than to say things like "I don't believe it" or "the sampling size is too small." Every week @FLRacingFan posts what I consider to be very interesting information as to how all sorts of programming is faring in the marketplace and every week the numbers are unkind to Nascar.

The average age of a Nascar fan is 58 while NFL and NHL fans come in at 49, the NBA at 42 and MLS at 40. The general population is aging but Nascar fans are leading the charge so until that problem is alleviated good things are not in Nascar's future.
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It has another problem. It will happen when the next TV contract comes up. The tracks get money from that contract. If the contract is smaller, the payments to the tracks in the future get smaller. Without a fan base that is in the stands generating a positive flow of dollars one has to wonder what happens?
 
One thing that seems to separate the side that believes Nascar is failing and one or two that thinks Nascar is OK is the sources they get their info from. For the "everything is OK" side small undated pictures are used to show full houses and younger crowds and Brian France and NBC PR are offered as credible for accurate information. Other information is put forth that either skirts or ignores the issue or is so out of context and totality it can't be used.

What I like to use is the weekly TV ratings. There is no reason to believe they are making numbers up to show Nascar in a negative light as who would it benefit? Who would be compensating Nielsen and others for lying and giving a Nascar a poor rating?

We know that everyone from the title sponsor of the series to primary and associate sponsors of the teams is paying less than what they used to and this has caused drivers like Kurt and Matt to remain unsigned for next year and a viable team like the 77 to close down. Youngsters, has beens and never was' are earning 15K per cup race in salary. Wow!

We know that the tracks have ripped out thousands upon thousands of seats and some tracks are still at it. We know that there are very few sold out venues and even the year end finale that had tickets available the morning of the race and the joint only sits 43K.

These are just some of the things that are known that paint a grim picture. If you believe differently from me that is totally fine but there is no sense in arguing about it as there is no middle ground.

Michfan said:
http://m.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Jo.../Research-and-Ratings/Viewership-trends.aspx?

11 years ago NASCAR fans were older than NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAAF, and NCAAB fans. They remain that way today.
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I appreciate you getting me the info as Nascar fans were older 10 years ago but they were only 3 years older than NFL fans back then and are now 8 years older. Nascar has the double whammy of being older to begin with and aging out at an accelerated rate.
 
StandOnIt said:
it won't matter..they will continue to use flawed reasoning to continue to troll. They will change the subject to something else ..oh what about this,,,oh that is a problem..oh look at this..on and on.
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I would really enjoy having a civil discussion with you and go over the facts point by point any time you wish as there is an awful lot we do know. Just in case you wish to get the ball rolling I believe:

Nascar's broadcast ratings are in a continued period of decline.
There is less money flowing into the teams coffers.
Nascar has an older fan base that is aging at an accelerated rate compared to most sports.
Most races don't sell out based on the availability of tickets and large inventory of unused seats.
This season was the least watched in 20 years.

To the best of my knowledge none of my points are in dispute but if you feel any of them are incorrect I would be happy to see what you have got that would make me change my mind.
 
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StandOnIt said:
it won't matter..they will continue to use flawed reasoning to continue to troll. They will change the subject to something else ..oh what about this,,,oh that is a problem..oh look at this..on and on.
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No trolling, the fact is there in bold black and white type, the appeal, the attendance, the tv ratings and the racing are failing.
 
Mopardh9 said:
No trolling, the fact is there in bold black and white type, the appeal, the attendance, the tv ratings and the racing are failing.
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Hopefully a fruitful discussion can be had and see what can be hashed out. IMO the key is to stay on point and not change horses midstream as this is not an argument to be won or lost but a good faith attempt at discovering if there is any common ground.
 
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Mopardh9 said:
No trolling, the fact is there in bold black and white type, the appeal, the attendance, the tv ratings and the racing are failing.
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That was posted about the misconception that all of a sudden Nascar has an older demographic. ;) you did just what I said ..man :D they call that trolling everywhere else on the net but here.
 
Mopardh9 said:
No trolling, the fact is there in bold black and white type, the appeal, the attendance, the tv ratings and the racing are failing.
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Funny how those that wish to silence the facts don't like the clean concise way you expressed yourself in that post.
 
StandOnIt said:
That was posted about the misconception that all of a sudden Nascar has an older demographic. ;) you did just what I said ..man :D they call that trolling everywhere else on the net but here.
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Several sources say that Nascar has an old fan base (Average age 58) and that it is aging at an accelerated rate. Are you disputing this and if so what source(s) are you using to arrive at that conclusion?
 
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