As we close out an eventful 2019 and look back at the last 10 years, I wish I had a deeply profound column that would encapsulate this decade in sports business. Unfortunately, I don’t. But don’t stop reading — because in this issue, we recognize some of the most notable individuals, leagues, events and other accomplishments of the last 10 years.
Led by our Assistant Managing Editor Ted Keith, these decisions were heavily debated, with the biggest disagreements over league (NBA closely over NFL), team (Warriors edging out the New England Patriots) and network (NBC Sports narrowly topping ESPN) of the decade.
But as we look at the success stories, let’s not forget the many challenging situations, and the entities that endured some difficulties. One property that has struggled is NASCAR, and I thought of that while I watched NASCAR’s leadership work the room at the March of Dimes Charity Luncheon earlier this month.
When we look back to our headlines in late 2009, NASCAR was delivering strong ratings with major brands pouring money into the sport. There was a great deal of enthusiasm around Danica Patrick’s decision to run some select Nationwide Series races, fueling speculation that would bring new fans to the sport. NASCAR was in a good place. But there were some dark clouds on the horizon. Drivers wanted NASCAR’s leadership to engage with them on rules changes, Ray Evernham implored leadership to do what it could to keep costs down and not be “greedy,” and even NASCAR executives were starting to go public in their criticism of the way the sport was being covered by its media partners.
We all know the narrative around NASCAR over the past decade and the challenges the sport has faced, and there are various reasons for its decline: an aging fan base, neglect of its core market and principles, an evolving car culture and the changing attitudes of fans and viewers of the sport. But it was also about leadership, and that’s what struck me at the March of Dimes luncheon and over the past year. NASCAR, for all its challenges, finally has leadership to believe in.
In talking to CEO Jim France, you can see why morale is so much higher at the track and in the Charlotte, New York and Daytona offices. He cares and he listens. He and Lesa France Kennedy are working hard in public and behind the scenes to make the changes necessary (and long overdue) to give the sport a chance. When you see the tireless efforts of President Steve Phelps to be trackside every week, to meet with team owners, to work with corporate partners and receive rave reviews for his collaboration from his media rights holders, you know the engagement of its leadership has changed. Even the visible role of Lesa’s 27-year-old son, Ben Kennedy, who gets positive marks from notoriously cynical racing insiders, is a good sign for the future.
As we look back on the big stories of the past year, the one that gets too often overlooked is the significant transformation NASCAR’s leadership team has brought to the sport. There was a transition to new management; a move of its season-ending celebration from Las Vegas to a very successful event in Nashville. In October, NASCAR completed its complex acquisition of ISC, which will allow it to dramatically change its race calendar and track rotation. And in December, NASCAR introduced a revamped sponsorship model that ended years of Cup series title sponsorship in favor of a tiered sponsor system. It also got into the sports gambling and OTT space, and hopes to unveil a long-needed new race schedule by the first quarter of next year.
Those accomplishments were met with other promising indicators that NASCAR may have stabilized — ratings for the first time in years were close to flat, attendance showed signs of a rebound and there were positive results from the next generation of drivers. I just don’t know if all of this comes too late. There’s not enough new money or fans coming into the sport, and I have said publicly that it’s still a very steep hill that NASCAR must climb — and its place in the sports landscape in the U.S. isn’t entirely clear.
But let’s see what this leadership team can do, because in Jim France, Lesa France Kennedy and Steve Phelps, NASCAR has leadership that is focused, all in, respected and publicly committed to working tirelessly to get the sport back on track. That hasn’t always been the case.
Abraham Madkour can be reached at amadkour@sportsbusinessjournal.com.
