The NASCAR Xfinity Series Will Have an Exclusive New Home on The CW Network
The CW to Broadcast All NASCAR Xfinity Series Races Starting in 2025
33 Race Weekends Per Year
JULY 28, 2023 (Burbank, CA) – The CW Network will become the exclusive home to the NASCAR Xfinity Series beginning in 2025 and extending through the 2031 racing season. The CW will broadcast 33 live NASCAR Xfinity Series races annually, along with practice and qualifying events each weekend. Starting in 2025, for the first time in series history, every NASCAR Xfinity Series race will be available on free, over-the-air broadcast television with additional content available through The CW’s digital platforms. All NASCAR Xfinity Series races and ancillary content will be fully produced by the Emmy Award-winning NASCAR Productions group, in close collaboration with The CW Network.
Comprised primarily of NASCAR’s younger, up-and-coming drivers, the NASCAR Xfinity Series features the sport’s future stars often competing side-by-side against NASCAR’s biggest names – many of whom earned their stripes and won championships in the Xfinity Series. NASCAR Xfinity Series races in some of the nation’s largest markets—from Chicago to Los Angeles to Miami—and at the sport’s most iconic tracks, including the Daytona International Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway and the series championship at Phoenix Raceway.
NASCAR Xfinity Series races draw an average of approximately 1 million viewers per race each season, historically airing on a combination of cable and broadcast television, but will now be entirely and exclusively distributed on broadcast television. The NASCAR Xfinity Series agreement with The CW underscores recent trends in which major sports properties have prioritized broadcast television to ensure the widest reach for their fan base and industry.
“Landing the NASCAR Xfinity Series is a game changer for The CW and our CW Sports division and represents another important building block in our programming strategy,” said Dennis Miller, President of The CW. “Live sports are the most watched television content and with The CW’s national reach, moving NASCAR Xfinity Series to The CW will transform and elevate the viewing experience for the series and its fans. The CW has quickly become a destination for sports, as the NASCAR Xfinity Series joins our growing slate of sports programming, including INSIDE THE NFL, ACC college football and basketball, LIV Golf, and the motorsports documentary series 100 DAYS TO INDY. Beginning in 2025, The CW will have 48 weekends per year of live sports programming. With ubiquitous distribution across one of the nation’s five major broadcast networks, NASCAR Xfinity Series races on The CW will deliver more access for fans and far more revenue opportunities for The CW and its affiliates.
Brian Herbst, Senior Vice President, Media and Productions for NASCAR commented, “CW’s leadership shared a compelling vision for cultivating the next generation of NASCAR talent by bringing the NASCAR Xfinity Series exclusively to broadcast television and we are thrilled for the opportunity to partner with them. With more than one million viewers tuning in each week to see NASCAR’s future stars battle some of its biggest names at our most legendary tracks, NASCAR Xfinity Series consistently delivers the moments that excite current fans and create new fans of our great sport.”
Mr. Miller added, “Live sports are key to expanding broadcast audiences and are valuable to our network affiliates and cable, satellite, telco and streaming distribution partners as well as The CW and its parent company, Nexstar Media Group, Inc. Nexstar’s owned and operated stations and The CW’s nationwide affiliate network will allow us to create local excitement for the Xfinity Series as we expand its reach and drive viewership growth. This will deliver a larger audience for NASCAR Xfinity Series competitions, its major sponsors and CW advertisers looking for national brand awareness and local activation. In addition, by creating a singular home for NASCAR Xfinity Series races, fans will be able to quickly find their favorite racing entertainment each weekend. Ultimately, bringing NASCAR Xfinity Series racing to The CW is a win-win for everyone – fans, drivers, teams, sponsors and affiliates. We can’t wait for the green flag to begin flying on The CW in 2025.”
Andy Alford, President of Nexstar’s Broadcasting Division said, “Nexstar is already NASCAR’s third-largest broadcast partner, carrying NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series races across its FOX and NBC affiliates and has a deep understanding of NASCAR’s value. NASCAR’s loyal and passionate fan base and adrenaline-fueled races will provide CW stations with highly valuable live sports content that can deliver big audiences. These exciting events resonate in our local markets and with a local Nexstar station within driving distance of each and every NASCAR market, we are uniquely suited to drive attendance, viewership and revenues through local coverage, fan engagement, promotion and value-added marketing solutions for advertisers and brands.”
2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series Highlights
- NXS has produced 11 different winners this season – tied for the fifth-most through 18 races (all-time: 1982-Present)
- The average age of the 11 winners this season is 29.
- 6 of the 11 different winners are 30 years old or under. The youngest being is 18-years old.
- 6 of the last 11 NASCAR Cup Series championships have been won by former NASCAR Xfinity Series champions
- Chase Elliott (2020), Kyle Busch (2019, 2015), Martin Truex Jr. (2017), Kevin Harvick (2014) and Brad Keselowski (2012).
- 13 former NASCAR Xfinity Series champions are currently active in the NASCAR Cup Series
- Ty Gibbs (2022), Austin Cindric (2020), Tyler Reddick (2019, 2018), William Byron (2017), Daniel Suarez (2016), Chris Buescher (2015), Chase Elliott (2014), Austin Dillon (2013), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (2012, 2011), Brad Keselowski (2010), Kyle Busch (2009), Kevin Harvick (2006, 2001), Martin Truex Jr. (2005, 2004).
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About The CW Network
The CW Network, LLC is one of America’s major broadcast networks and reaches 100% of US television households. The CW delivers 14 hours of primetime programming per week in addition to sports and other entertainment programming and is the exclusive broadcast home to LIV Golf. The fully ad-supported CW App, with more than 96 million downloads to date, is available for free to consumers on all major platforms and is home to the latest episodes and seasons of The CW’s primetime programming, live streaming of its sports content, and a library of entertaining film and television content for on-demand viewing. The CW is 75%-owned by Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST), a leading diversified media company and largest CW affiliate group with 37 CW and CW Plus affiliates, covering 32% of the population. For more information about The CW, please visit www.cwtv.com.
About Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXST) is a leading diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports and entertainment content across television, streaming and digital platforms, including more than 300,000 hours of news, sports, and entertainment programming each year. Nexstar owns America’s largest local broadcasting group comprised of top network affiliates, with 200 owned or partner stations in 116 U.S. markets reaching 212 million people. Nexstar’s national television properties include The CW, America’s fifth major broadcast network, NewsNation, America’s fastest-growing national news and entertainment cable network reaching 70 million television homes, popular entertainment multicast networks Antenna TV and Rewind TV, and a 31.3% ownership stake in TV Food Network. The Company’s portfolio of digital assets, including The Hill and BestReviews, are collectively a Top 10 U.S. digital news and information property. In addition to delivering exceptional content and service to our communities, Nexstar provides premium multiplatform and video-on-demand advertising opportunities at scale for businesses and brands seeking to leverage the strong consumer engagement of our compelling content offering. For more information, please visit nexstar.tv.
About NASCAR
Celebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2023, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR sanctions races in three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series™), four international series (NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race, NASCAR Mexico Series, NASCAR Pinty’s Series (Canada), NASCAR Whelen Euro Series), four regional series (ARCA Menards Series, ARCA Menards Series East & West and the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour) and a local grassroots series (NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races annually in 12 countries and more than 30 U.S. states.
For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).
The CW Media Contacts:
Beth Feldman, 646/563-8334
Beth.Feldman@cwtv.com
Rob Moynihan, 760/519-5543
Rob.Moynihan@cwtvconsultant.com
NASCAR Media Contact:
Eric Ryan, 386/262-5783
eryan@nascar.com