Warner Bros. Discovery, Amazon Reportedly Competing With Mystery Bidder to Land NASCAR Rights
Warner Bros. Discovery, Amazon Reportedly Competing With Mystery Bidder to Land NASCAR Rights
Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery are both awaiting the green flag from NASCAR. A new report from Bloomberg indicates that the two companies are both in the mix to land a package of six to eight summertime NASCAR races when the circuit’s broadcast rights become available after the 2024-25 season.
NASCAR is currently signed with Fox and NBC, and the Bloomberg report indicates that those two companies are close to renewing their contracts. But NASCAR wants to emulate bigger sports leagues like the NFL by selling its rights to as many outlets as possible, maximizing its own profits. Races would stream on Prime Video if Amazon wins the bid; if WBD is successful, races could air on TNT as they did until 2015, and stream simultaneously on Max.
Reports from this spring indicated that NASCAR wanted a select package of its races to be streaming-only, including its lower-level Xfinity Series. Amazon was reportedly leading the pack to land that bundle of races, but its interest in pursuing NBA rights kept it from jumping into NASCAR racing with both feet.
That has led to a shift in plans for NASCAR, whose streaming plans now seem much less ambitious. The CW agreed to a deal with NASCAR in late July to broadcast the Xfinity Series starting in 2025, and races will stream simultaneously for free on The CW app.
The Bloomberg report indicates that a third, unnamed broadcaster is also bidding for the slimmed-down package of races that Amazon and WBD have their eyes on. Could it be Apple? The company has been mentioned frequently as a potential partner with Disney for ESPN, and has been connected to the NBA, the Pac-12 and other sports leagues as it tries to build its sports streaming portfolio.
WBD announced this week that it was deploying around-the-clock CNN news programming on Max for the first time, and its live sports launch on the service is expected in the next month or two. Prime Video is gearing up for its second season as the exclusive home of the NFL’s “Thursday Night Football” broadcasts. Both companies make sense for NASCAR to partner with, as does Apple (if it is indeed the unnamed third bidder). But which will cross the finish line first?
HBO Max
HBO Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library and exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Within HBO Max, B/R Sports allows users to watch live NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.