As posted on Jayski

chris.press.5 said:
The nfl and nascar have "destination" tv. All other sports have to much inventory to compare to them. Nascar fans run all over the Internet thinking this means nascar is 2nd to nfl in popularity. It isn't. It's behind the nba and mlb but I'd say it's more popular than the nhl. All other racing on tv is small time. It's comparable to euro soccers tv numbers on high end and mls figures on the low end.

In all the yrs I surveyed viewers and still today somewhat things like on air talent or on screen graphics aren't reasons for viewership ups and downs
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Good post chris , welcome to the forum. :)
 
I predict, and hope, that with the changes in networks next year FOX will change up some of their talent. Time to move Larry and DW out. I wouldn't mind seeing a someone like Ricky Craven/Dale Jarrett make the move to FOX.
 
NASCAR is the "underground" sport just as rock has moved from being on top in the 80s and is now "underground" now. Time to get used it. Cant forsee how and when NASCAR will ever be as large as it was ever again. It only appeals to certain demographics unlike other major sports - I personally don't give a **** about ratings. As long as the ratings are high enough to stay on TV - I'm good.
 
All fox talent have signed multi yr deals EXCEPT larry and DW. I don't read too much into that though.
 
Let's look past the TV ratings, NASCAR has stopped announcing attendance at the tracks. Yes I know in the early 2000's each track added as many seats as possible. Some have said in recent years the down turned economy was to blame for the lack of attendance. Has anybody noticed during the broadcast I my opinion I don't see the cameras panning the stands as they use too. The product on the TV and the product on the track has declined. The IROC series pitted matching cars against the drivers, I believe NASCAR has succeeded in bringing IROC to Sprint Cup, cookie cutter tracks, cookie cutter cars and poor television timing is driving the numbers down.
 
The problem is a declining interest in motorsports in general in America.
That problem can't be fixed by changing announcers, or fewer ads, or better presentation, or even better racing.

These #s must be very discouraging for Nascar. In the last few years it seemed like we'd hit the bottom of the cycle and leveled out. Apparently there was still room at the bottom to sink further.

It's a star-driven sport. And most of the stars of Nascar are grey-beards.

New, younger stars might help. But the main problem is a general decline in American interest in racing and motorsports in general, especially among younger viewers.

Nascar has a 10 year TV contract and isn't going anywhere. It's just less important to America than it used to be.
 
sloggie said:
I think there are 4 reasons:
1) Commercials. Just too many of them.
2) Boogity
3) Boogity
4) Boogity


Seriously, I think the Waltrip(s) are so bad that they drive away new fans.
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I believe that is one of the reasons. MW is a pathetic shill.
 
Put this all into a little perspective. Ratings decline is not limited to NASCAR. It's pretty much across the board. Forget the NFL. It is a giant draw and not anything that will ever be challenged when it comes to viewership. NBA viewership down. MLB is a draw over last year. NHL, down. PGA, down. NCAA BB, down. NASCAR, down. IRL, down. 2014 Olympics, down. Sports television viewership in general, DOWN. Even with the downward trend in most all sports NASCAR continues to outdraw its televised sport competitors each weekend. Again, the exception being the NFL. The world's changing. Peoples viewing habits have changed. You can blame it on the brothers Waltrip or too many commercials or whatever else you can come up with. Simple answer is, we just don't watch sports like we used to. As long as sports are continued to be broadcast, NASCAR will be there among the most viewed sporting broadcast of each weekend. Sit back, relax and enjoy the racing and you'll do your part to add to the numbers that you're all concerned with. Let the suits get ulcers over it.
 
If DP was doing well, the viewership would go through the roof. When she wins, wait to see what happens to the viewers.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
IF that were to possibly happen, the rating boost would be short lived at best.
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Sigh. You are probably right..The nation needs to get excited about motor sports!

Arent there some celebrities with racing experience? Maybe we could have them race a couple of races? Grasping at straws here.
 
DanicaFreak said:
Sigh. You are probably right..The nation needs to get excited about motor sports!

Arent there some celebrities with racing experience? Maybe we could have them race a couple of races? Grasping at straws here.
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I've still got to wonder why this is such a concern. We're watching some pretty good racing each and every week. The sport is going to be here for a long time to come. Take some time to enjoy it.
 
I know--I am just concerned in todays age of "pay me now" that our racing coverage go away unless viewership climbs. Love the racing this year some of best ever.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
Put this all into a little perspective. Ratings decline is not limited to NASCAR. It's pretty much across the board. Forget the NFL. It is a giant draw and not anything that will ever be challenged when it comes to viewership. NBA viewership down. MLB is a draw over last year. NHL, down. PGA, down. NCAA BB, down. NASCAR, down. IRL, down. 2014 Olympics, down. Sports television viewership in general, DOWN. Even with the downward trend in most all sports NASCAR continues to outdraw its televised sport competitors each weekend. Again, the exception being the NFL. The world's changing. Peoples viewing habits have changed. You can blame it on the brothers Waltrip or too many commercials or whatever else you can come up with. Simple answer is, we just don't watch sports like we used to. As long as sports are continued to be broadcast, NASCAR will be there among the most viewed sporting broadcast of each weekend. Sit back, relax and enjoy the racing and you'll do your part to add to the numbers that you're all concerned with. Let the suits get ulcers over it.
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I don't know about the rest but I did read this week NCAA Tourney viewership is at its highest since 1993.
 
Nascar still gets better rating then everything but football, it's just a sport you have to born into. It's hard to become a fan unless you already had an interest in racing. Much like golf and tennis IMOIMO
 
A friend of mine talked me into going to watch his step son and his wife compete in drifting last weekend. There were over 200 cars there. The younger crowd does have an interest in motorsports. I asked his kid what it was that got him interested in drifting. He told me it looked like it was easy enough. But when he found out you could run a car, that you could also use to go to work, it was something he could afford to do. He bought his Honda for twenty three hundred dollars and went drifting. He has since put another fifteen hundred into the car to be more competitive, but that ain't much when you talk about motorsports. Stock automobiles that don't cost an arm and a leg, and have a practical side to them, is where their interest is. Today's Nascar cars don't have a stock part on them, and there is no way the young people could even begin to afford them. They are interested in things they can be a part of, and Nascar isn't it. Part of the reason us older fans became fans in the first place, is because back then you could buy a stock car and go racing for an affordable amount of money. Those days are long gone, so don't hold your breath waiting for an influx of younger fans.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I've still got to wonder why this is such a concern. We're watching some pretty good racing each and every week. The sport is going to be here for a long time to come. Take some time to enjoy it.
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Just like with any company, when you see diminishing returns, it is cause for concern and something that shouldn't just be ignored. Brian France has not ignored it, he's just going about fixing it the wrong way. NASCAR had the good fortune of there being two fledgling sports networks needing an anchor sport right around the time their TV contracts were up for renewal, but I wonder if anyone is going to be there in 2024 if the ratings continue to dip at the rate they have been over the last several years. You would think ratings would be better this year with the sport's biggest star having a great year and with the improved quality of racing, but the needle is still moving in the wrong direction. I don't think it's so ridiculous that people are showing concern.
 
old fan said:
Let's look past the TV ratings, NASCAR has stopped announcing attendance at the tracks. Yes I know in the early 2000's each track added as many seats as possible. Some have said in recent years the down turned economy was to blame for the lack of attendance. Has anybody noticed during the broadcast I my opinion I don't see the cameras panning the stands as they use too. The product on the TV and the product on the track has declined. The IROC series pitted matching cars against the drivers, I believe NASCAR has succeeded in bringing IROC to Sprint Cup, cookie cutter tracks, cookie cutter cars and poor television timing is driving the numbers down.
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I know it hasnt been "stock" car racing in many years, but even before the car of tomorrow you could tell the difference between a chevy and a ford. I don't understand why all cars have to be "equal".

Part of racing is having the best car, shouldn't teams be rewarded for that?
 
DaBiff1618 said:
Nascar still gets better rating then everything but football, it's just a sport you have to born into. It's hard to become a fan unless you already had an interest in racing. Much like golf and tennis IMOIMO
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Disagree with that, I can't tell you how many non fans i took to races years ago, that loved it when they saw it the first time.

Nascar has turned into a circus, and therefore i think turned fans off.
 
ToyYoda said:
Just like with any company, when you see diminishing returns, it is cause for concern and something that shouldn't just be ignored. Brian France has not ignored it, he's just going about fixing it the wrong way. NASCAR had the good fortune of there being two fledgling sports networks needing an anchor sport right around the time their TV contracts were up for renewal, but I wonder if anyone is going to be there in 2024 if the ratings continue to dip at the rate they have been over the last several years. You would think ratings would be better this year with the sport's biggest star having a great year and with the improved quality of racing, but the needle is still moving in the wrong direction. I don't think it's so ridiculous that people are showing concern.
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Maybe I should have said..... I've still got to wonder why this is such a concern to the viewing fan. Like I said before, I used to get all worked up about the ratings as well. I finally learned that there not a lot that I can do to affect it. I can watch and add to the numbers so that's what I choose to do. I can tell friends about the sport and try to get them interested in watching that and I do that as well. That's about the extent of it for me.
 
My BIL got me ito Nascar in my teens - he's about 6 years older than me - and through circumstances I hadn't seen or talked to him for a number of years, until last fall. So we're catching up and I asked if was still into Nascar and he says he isn't. That really surprised me as he was a pretty big Earnhardt/Jr/Chevy fan so of course I asked why and he said that he thought they changed the rules too much.

Those were some good times as the races were almost always followed by an incredible Sunday night supper :)
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
Maybe I should have said..... I've still got to wonder why this is such a concern to the viewing fan. Like I said before, I used to get all worked up about the ratings as well. I finally learned that there not a lot that I can do to affect it. I can watch and add to the numbers so that's what I choose to do. I can tell friends about the sport and try to get them interested in watching that and I do that as well. That's about the extent of it for me.
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Unless you have a Nielsen box or watch the race soon after on a dvr, you yourself are not adding the number. I do agree that as a viewer, there is not much you can do but for me, I want as many people to watch the sport as possible so the sport can make some fans future drivers.. That will be harder to do if Nascar isn't on tv as much as it is now.
 
Cable and Satellite TV Company's computers know all and see all. They know when and what is watched and DVR'd at all times by everybody on their systems and it stands to reason that these statistics are used even if they deny it. There is simply too much money to be made with that kind of information for them not to use it and if it is used just think how truly accurate the statistics would be.
 
Johali said:
Cable and Satellite TV Company's computers know all and see all. They know when and what is watched and DVR'd at all times by everybody on their systems and it stands to reason that these statistics are used even if they deny it. There is simply too much money to be made with that kind of information for them not to use it and if it is used just think how truly accurate the statistics would be.
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Dish network knows what I am watching. I'm sure that info is relayed on.
 
NASCAR just doesn't seem to be all that popular anymore. I know of literally one person that enjoys NASCAR, and doesn't laugh at me when I say I'm an avid fan (I live in New York). Nobody laughs at you for saying you're a hockey, baseball, football, etc. fan. As long as the stereotype of NASCAR being a sport where a bunch of drunk rednecks drive in circles for 4 hours persists, the sport will never grow in popularity. Let's face it, it's simply just not that interesting to a casual viewer who turns in to check it out. Unless you truly understand what's going on in the races and have some drivers to root for, it's hard to get interested in. I'm not a big hockey fan, but I'll watch a game if there's nothing else on because the action is exciting. I doubt that many non-fans just sit around watching NASCAR, because green-flag racing isn't all that exciting at a 1.5 mile track, at least not to somebody who doesn't really get the sport. I highly doubt that DW or the commercials are driving away new fans, it seems to be more that America as a whole doesn't have an obsession with auto racing like it does with football, basketball, and baseball.
 
When nascar was becoming huge in the mid to late 90s it's races were on 5 then 6 diff channels with no week to week promotion for the next race was on the same network. The tv ratings in that era were about where the ratings are now. The ALL TIME high ratings produced by fox and nbc from 2001-06 just weren't sustainable.

This is the 1st time nascar has had to deal with a downturn in popularity. Forever it was always building a fanbase. Gradually getting more and more popular. Nascar reacted poorly to it for awhile but now seems to understand better the best way to combat it. This isn't a "team" or "franchise" sport where there's a local team to cheer for yr in yr out. Fans, for the most part have fave drivers. When those drivers career ends a lot of fans have moved on with them. Other fans are so resistant to change they moved on because if that. YOU CANT get those people back! It's why nascar is always chasing new fans.

Isc/smi need to continue to tear down seats. I think both buried their heads in the sand when the crowds started getting smaller. Keep tearing them down until they are full. The economy has hurt a ton with attendance but cost is also a big reason.
 
IndyCar opener ratings on ABC hit a 5 year low.
There's a secular decline in motorsports.
 
Somehow FS1 has lost distribution since its conversion from SPEED, but NBCSN is in the most homes it has ever been in (+2.6 million in the last year alone). I wonder how this will come into play next year.

FS1 is in 86.7 million homes, which is the net's lowest mark since it made the conversion from Speed last August. On a positive note, NBCSN this month crossed the 80 million home mark for the first time, which includes years when the net was known as OLN and Versus.
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http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Daily/Issues/2014/03/04/Research-and-Ratings/March-cable.aspx?hl=cable sports distribution&sc=0#.UzwP08cfx7E.facebook
 
It isn't a Motorsports problem only. Sports in general are low. 2013 was a record low for mlb ratings. This season nba is trending towards being the worst ever. The nhl isn't even a blip on the radar. No tiger? Golf ratings tanking. The nfl seems bulletproof at this point. soccer is on the rise as well in the ratings. 700 channel universe, other entertainment options, online ability to watch events, DVR. All are the MAIN reasons ratings all over tv are down.

Something to look for over the next 10/15yrs is the 500 channel universe to become the 300 channel universe. The amount of niche and super niche tv channels out there is amazing. They're BLEEDING $$$ something fierce. In last few yrs major broadcasters have bought a lot of these channels but rebranding hasn't worked and they're becoming liabilities to them. A tipping point is coming soon with advertisers who are getting weary of nothing returns on investments on these channels.

In the sports world the next 15/20yrs are laid out already. Espn/espn2/espnu/espnnews/fs1/fs2/nbcsn/CBSSN/nfln/MLBN/nbatv/nhltv/golf/tennis/bein/fox soccer plus.

The last 4 channels are the next for that will cease to exist. Though none soon, eventually the content airing on these channels will become to valuable to keep on them. The league owned nets arent going anywhere obviously. And the national sports channels are in for the long haul. Speed and fuel tv were the 1st dominoes to fall.
 
In 20 years, almost everything will be online. Sports subscription based. only my opinion but their is money to be made by taking all the profit and making people pay for it. Now, maybe that won't effect Nascar and maybe only big events like the Superbowl will be on broadcast tv. Just a trend I'm seeing.
 
That will only happen if tv ceases to exist. Way less $$$ to be made that way. Billions of $$$ in rights fees to sell that Internet companies will never be able to afford.
 
chris.press.5 said:
That will only happen if tv ceases to exist. Way less $$$ to be made that way. Billions of $$$ in rights fees to sell that Internet companies will never be able to afford.
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It's already happening, dude. Lazyking is right. Look at ESPN360, FoxSportsGo, MLB.TV, etc. Sports are already moving to online. In 10 years you'll pay $125 per year or whatever and watch your sports in HD on the computer.
 
Those are supplemental. Espn and fox offer streaming of its tv channels and in espn's case offers exclusive low end coll sports and some intl sports. The key?? You have to sub to espn and fox through a tv provider to access the content! Nbc also offers this. He was talking about things being ONLY on the Internet. Major sports aren't event close to that. For the next 20 yrs or so streaming sports will be an add on or through authenticated tv provider
 
Any links to data on NBA tv ratings decline? I haven't seen much data indicating the NBA is having problems. The NBA had a nice little boom in recent years with LeBron and the Heat.

And MLB's TV ratings haven't been so great, but they set all sorts of attendance records in recent years.

It will be interesting to see how high soccer goes. Top Premier League games are routinely beating the NHL on NBCSports now. And at often early hours. Soccer still is small potatoes, of course.
 
It's playoff ratings have stabilized in recent years but are largely dependent on certain teams. Weekly reg season games on abc did a 2.0 avg last season.
 
Everything has a cycle to it. In the eighties ratings and popularity started climbing. I continued climbing until the mid two thousands, when it peaked, and it's been a steady decline ever since. It will continue until it gets to a minimum, then it will start to rise again. I'm not worried because the drop has been slow and steady, it's not like Nascar fell off a cliff. If it had been sudden and drastic I would be worried. They are just on the down swing of a natural cycle.
 
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