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Article: Chasing the money-Part Deux; Sponsor exodus from a troubled "NASCAR Nation'.
- Article from:
- Tire Business
- Article date:
- January 19, 2009
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Crain Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Rich Thomaselli
Once-unstoppable NASCAR is hitting a wall as its fan base erodes, race attendance declines, TV ratings slip, the auto industry implodes and economically stressed marketers slam the brakes on sponsorships.
The pileup is so big that NASCARlong held up as the gold standard in sports marketing due to its followers, who are fiercely loyal to the sport and its sponsoring brandshas seen participating teams lay off 1,000 employees. Meanwhile, NASCAR is fretting over whether it could actually lose money for the 2009 racing season.
Speaking in December in New York at NASCAR's big year-end promotional event, Champions Week, CEO ...