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Joey Logano wins the NASCAR Cup Series Championship in 2024. NASCAR's 2024 season finale at Phoenix garnered 2.9 million viewers on NBC, marking a solid conclusion to the year and confirming a full-season average of 2.87 million viewers for the stock car racing series. This result reflects a steady year for the sport, with the numbers closely matching those from 2023.
Consistent Viewership Across the Season
The championship race's viewership held steady with last year’s season finale, which drew 2.92 million viewers. The 2024 NASCAR playoffs saw an average of 2.3 million viewers, which represents a 5% increase over the 2023 figure of 2.2 million. Meanwhile, the regular season averaged 3.13 million viewers, helping to bring the overall full-season average to 2.87 million — a number consistent with the previous year.
An official NASCAR statement reported that the series averaged 2.89 million viewers across race telecasts from the Daytona 500 to the season finale at Phoenix on linear television. This number, however, does not include the 1.51 million viewers who tuned in for the rain-affected Busch Light Clash. Including this event would further underscore the viewership strength of NASCAR’s 2024 season.
Impact of Rain Delays on Major Races
Despite several setbacks due to weather, NASCAR’s overall viewership remained stable. Key races like the Daytona 500, the Chicago Street Race, and the Coca-Cola 600, which are typically among the most-watched events of the season, all experienced notable drops in viewership due to rain interruptions. Specifically, the Busch Light Clash fell 58.6% in viewership, the Daytona 500 dropped by 27.1%, the Chicago Street Race decreased by 16.4%, and the Coca-Cola 600 saw an 8.7% decline.
While these events were affected by weather conditions, NASCAR still managed to match its 2023 viewership average, highlighting the overall strength of the season. Despite the rain disruptions, the series' ability to maintain a stable viewership figure is seen as a positive indicator for the future.
A Steady Year in Comparison to 2023
This marks the fourth time on record that NASCAR has averaged fewer than three million viewers for the season, but the fact that the series did not experience a year-over-year decline is considered a significant achievement. This consistency bodes well for the future of the sport, especially with the impending landmark broadcast deal set to kick off in 2025.
The major challenge NASCAR will face in the coming years will be ensuring fans are aware of the upcoming changes to the TV schedule. In 2025, NASCAR will have a more complicated broadcasting arrangement, with practice and qualifying sessions shown on Prime Video in the first half of the season (excluding the Clash, Daytona 500, and All-Star Race, which will air on Fox). The second half of the season will see TNT Sports take over the broadcast of practice and qualifying, while race broadcasts will be split between Fox (14 races), Prime Video (5 races), and TNT Sports (5 races) before NBC rounds out the season with 14 events.
Looking Ahead: Broadcast Changes for 2025
The new broadcast deal will see significant shifts in how fans experience NASCAR, especially with streaming platforms like Prime Video entering the mix. Ensuring that fans adjust to the changes in the TV schedule will be a key focus for NASCAR in 2025 to prevent any drop in viewership. The shift to a more complex broadcasting structure might pose a challenge initially, but NASCAR remains optimistic about its future outlook as it prepares for its next era of broadcasting and fan engagement.
As NASCAR heads into 2025, the series will aim to continue its momentum, leveraging a solid foundation in 2024 to build excitement around the new TV deals and keep viewers engaged for years to come.
