While NASCAR’s physical headquarters may be in Daytona Beach, Florida, it’s probably not entirely wrong to say its spiritual home is in North Carolina.
After all, North Carolina is the home to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, it’s where more NASCAR enthusiasts live than anywhere else, and – of course – it’s the home state of the Earnhardt family.
So it’s little surprise that NASCAR is excited to be part of the DraftKings (N.C.).
“DraftKings has a proven track record of enhancing the fan experience across sports,” Joe Solosky, NASCAR’s managing director of sports betting, said in release hyping the partnership. “We are thrilled to continue working with DraftKings to deliver NASCAR fans more engagement opportunities and bring its leading mobile sportsbook to North Carolina.”
Additionally, NASCAR and DraftKings have teamed up to name DraftKings the exclusive daily fantasy sports partner of NASCAR.
Of course, it’s not just DraftKings that’s part of the NASCAR experience; Speedway Motorsports, which owns and operates the Charlotte Motor Speedway and North Wilkesboro Speedway, entered into an agreement to be BetMGM in North Carolina.
“We have been eagerly awaiting legal, safe, regulated online sports betting in North Carolina, a state with more than 10 million people and one of the most vibrant sports environments in the country,” said BetMGM CEO Adam Greenblatt when the deal was inked. “BetMGM’s partnership with Charlotte Motor Speedway meets a great demand for entertainment from North Carolinians. Together we will deliver a premier and responsible gaming product that benefits many state agencies.”
NASCAR is ready for NC 2m201w
Of course, when the day officially comes for launch, all available North Carolina betting apps will undoubtedly be offering NASCAR markets.
And NASCAR is ready to see where it all leads.
According to people with knowledge of the situation, handle on NASCAR betting doubled from 2021 to 2022, continued to grow at large rates in 2023, and the hope is more and more NASCAR fans decide to engage with the product through betting sites.
And it’s not like NASCAR is sitting in the pit stop, just hoping people engage. NASCAR has a sports betting team that works with the sportsbooks, creating featured head-to-head matchups and featured bets, according to a spokesperson.
NASCAR believes there is a ton of room for growth, and does not consider itself a mature betting market like the NFL, NBA, or MLB.
And North Carolina legalizing sports betting is a major win for America’s premier auto racing operation. It’s the ninth-largest state, and according to a NASCAR spokesperson, it’s one of the biggest television markets for the sport in the nation, with Greensboro typically ranking first or second.
In short: Green flags ahead for NASCAR and North Carolina when it comes to sports betting.
