In an interview on Morning Joe promoting his hour long look at the business of Nascar, CNBC Sports Business Reporter Darren Rovell, said NASCAR is nervous about future sponsorships. According to Rovell attendance at NASCAR events is down 10% and so far sponsorship dollars are down 10% as well.
Despite that Sprint says its $75 million annual investment in NASCAR is worth every penny.
Even with that $75 million from Sprint, Rovell said the sport is trying to develop strategies on how to survive shrinking corporate dollar from other sponsors.
. The program premieres Thursday July 9, 2009 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
Rovell isn't the only one talking about NASCAR's woes.
*** Richard Petty is currently considering switching from Dodge to Toyota. The Japanese manufacturer that just two years ago was mocked and vilified by NASCAR purists has a chance to sign the King of NASCAR
*** Ford, GM and Dodge have now all reduced substantially their financial involvement in the Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series. Toyota is said to be considering a similar move.
*** Sponsorships are likely to get scarcer next year as contracts signed before the meltdown began start to expire. Even elite teams like Roush Fenway and Richard Childress Racing are struggling to keep existing sponsors lined up for 2010.
*** TV ratings for NASCAR are circling the drain. So are the ratings for other sports, but that's little comfort. It was one of the reasons NASCAR held its much-heralded "town hall" meeting of drivers and team owners and why it took the unprecedented step of changing its rules in the middle of a season to implement double-file restarts.
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