{"id":5382,"date":"2022-09-06T03:32:10","date_gmt":"2022-09-06T03:32:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/motorracingsports.com\/?p=5382"},"modified":"2022-10-13T02:55:39","modified_gmt":"2022-10-13T02:55:39","slug":"is-nascar-the-most-watched-sport-in-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/motorracingsports.com\/is-nascar-the-most-watched-sport-in-america\/","title":{"rendered":"Is NASCAR the Most Watched Sport in America?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Editorial credit: Lutsenko_Oleksandr \/ Shutterstock.com<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The United States is a nation of sports fans. These are people who love their athletics, and admire the stars of each game. One question that is therefore frequently on the minds of many people in the US and beyond is: which of these sports is the \u201cmost watched\u201d sport in America?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For many years, it has been long believed and assumed that NASCAR was the most watched sport in the country, but is this still true? NASCAR certainly does have huge numbers of fans, many of whom come to the tracks on race day<\/strong>, and if not watch it in their homes and in bars all across the nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n NASCAR is not the most watched sport in America. American Football averages 17 million viewers per game to NASCARs 3.7 Million viewers per race. However after a long period of viewership numbers decline the number of viewers tuning into watch NASCAR races is seeing a growth of approximately 10-15% per year since 2020. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n In today\u2019s blog, we want to determine whether or not NASCAR is still the most watched sport in America, and the reasons and other factors that are behind that fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The short answer to this question is no, but there\u2019s a bit more to it. For many years, and as recently as 2012-2013, <\/strong>NASCAR did indeed enjoy the top spot as the most watched sport,<\/a> but it has since been supplanted by the NFL, college football, Major League Baseball, the NBA and other events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The key issue comes with the keyword \u201cwatched.\u201d NASCAR does attract huge numbers of fans to the events — assuming an absence of COVID restrictions — such as the all-important Daytona 500, which can host an astonishing 101,500 fans at the location. The largest NFL stadium, the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, home of the New York Giants and New York Jets, only holds 82,500, by comparison.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n While NASCAR might be able to draw larger crowds, the now bigger and more important chunk of viewership comes from outside in the form of television audiences. When you factor in these numbers, then NASCAR falls far short of many of the national league-based team sports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We have an infographic below which details the estimated viewing and attendance figures for NASCAR and other popular sports for you to use and share, just credit us if you do please \ud83d\ude42<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n Overall, NASCAR\u2019s viewership as an individual motorsport has been in decline. The motorsports category overall in 2022 enjoys a viewership numbering just north of 9 million, but that pales in comparison to the 114+ million people who regularly watch the National Football League (NFL) or the nearly 69 million who watch Major League Baseball. <\/strong>NASCAR does make up the biggest<\/a> portion of the motorsports 9 million with 3.7 million viewers of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So neither NASCAR or its larger motorsports family enjoy the top spot, but it does all depend on how you look at it. When you factor in just the on-site spectators, the many NASCAR races do indeed outstrip those of any football game.<\/strong> The wider viewership, however, many would argue is more important because that\u2019s the main attraction for advertisers and sponsors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can check out the table below for the overall sport viewership comparison. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/a>Is NASCAR the Most Watched Sport in America?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>What are NASCAR\u2019s Viewing Figures? How Do They Compare to Other Sports?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n