Should NASCAR Take the Show on the Road Internationally?
NASCAR has undoubtedly become one of the biggest and most popular sports in the U.S. As NASCAR has grown in popularity in this country, the growth of its popularity has also expanded internationally. This growth raises the question of why NASCAR is not expanding further into the international community. Currently, NASCAR races in the Nationwide Series in Canada, and previously in Mexico as well. But NASCAR has not had a points paying race in the premier Sprint Cup series in the modern era outside of the United States. Although there have been experiments with the premier series outside the U.S., specifically Japan in the nineties, it never caught enough attention for NASCAR's liking.
Another question is raised from this issue of NASCAR being international: why does NASCAR need to expand internationally when there are markets currently in the U.S. that are underserved, such as the Pacific Northwest to the Mecca of sports in the U.S, New York City? Opponents of NASCAR going international feel that the faithful American fans in underserved markets deserve to have a chance of having a track in their market. This belief makes sense to me given the economic situation is so negative at this time; new tracks could create jobs and revenue for Americans in those underserved areas.
As a result, I feel that NASCAR should focus its efforts on serving its loyal fans in their own country first, especially those underserved by the current NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule.
And that's the view from here.
WV