The names and logos of casinos and sports betting operators may soon be a regular sight on the NASCAR circuit after the organization said it will allow racing teams to sell gambling sponsorships.
The announcement comes in the wake of a partnership recently concluded between the dominant sanctioning body of U.S. stock car racing and Sportradar to monitor betting activity on the NASCAR circuit and assist the organization in ensuring the integrity of its races.
NASCAR is still searching for a partner to help it monetize its proprietary racing data for distribution to casinos and bookmakers.
But, in the meantime, it is speeding ahead with new regulations for the 2019 season that will allow betting sponsors to advertise on cars at all tracks.
It will be a first in the U.S., which has resisted the alignment with gambling that has long been a fixture in international sports, most prominently in elite European soccer.
To take the example of the wealthiest and most-watched pro soccer organization in the world, the English Premier League, nine of the 20 clubs wear uniforms featuring gambling companies as the main sponsors, and betting entities make up nearly 60 percent of the league’s total sponsorships.
Italy, France, Spain and Germany also allow their clubs to feature betting companies as sponsors.
Among U.S. companies, only Las Vegas-based Ultimate Fighting Championship allows them. Cyprus-based Parimatch, a major player in online betting and gambling in Russia and the CIS, is the UFC’s official betting and wagering partner in Europe (excluding the UK and Ireland), the Middle East and Africa, and Parimatch branding is featured on UFC clothing and paraphernalia during matches in those countries.
Fox Sports and NBC Sports—the two networks that broadcast NASCAR races—have agreed to cover the circuit’s betting sponsorships like any other. Within certain limits. The sponsors will be restricted from added exposure in popular areas such as in-car cameras because of legal issues over advertising in states that don’t allow sports betting.
