National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (Nascar) is seeking to boost its profile within US sports betting through an expanded partnership with Sportradar.
A four-year deal between Nascar and Sportradar will now feature official betting data. The deal extends their long-term media data rights partnership that covers live timing and scoring data.
Nascar said sports betting on its events has increased exponentially since it signed its first agreement covering the sector. Betting operators saw a 51.5% year-on-year increase in the total amount of money wagered on the sport in 2022.
“As the sports industry’s leading technology company and a trusted partner of sportsbooks and media companies, Sportradar is uniquely positioned to support Nascar in capturing commercial opportunities,” said Eric Conrad, Sportradar’s executive vice-president of strategic partnerships and content.
“Our ability to leverage these rights in the marketplace will ultimately enrich the Nascar experience for fans.”
Nascar’s presence in the gambling sector includes partnerships with authorised gaming operators BetMGM, FanDuel and Penn Entertainment. In September 2020 it became the first league to partner with the American Gaming Association (AGA).
The Sportradar partnership covers 97 races annually from the Nascar Cup Series, Nascar Xfinity Series and Nascar Craftsman Truck Series.
Joe Solosky, Nascar’s managing director for sports betting, said: “Our partnership with Sportradar is foundational to our sports betting strategy from ensuring the integrity of our product to quickly providing authorised gaming operators and media partners with accurate, reliable data.
“Adding official betting data to the partnership will continue to catalyse Nascar’s rapid growth in the sports betting space and allow fans to further engage with the sport.”
Integrity services agreement
Since 2015, Nascar and Sportradar have agreed to several contract extensions related to media data rights. Additionally, in April 2022, the two organisations entered into a separate multi-year integrity services agreement.
Sportradar also has partnerships with major organisations such as Fifa, the National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball.
In another initiative to drive its betting profile, Nascar recently entered into a multi-year partnership with micro-betting technology provider nVenue.
Under the deal, nVenue will become an official micro-betting data and technology provider to Nascar. This will see nVenue develop in-race micro-betting markets and predictive content for fans across the US.
