Average viewership had been steadily increasing from 2020 onwards, peaking with the most-watched season since 2011 in 2023. But IndyCar did not enjoy the same success last year.
Full-season viewership was not released by IndyCar or previous broadcast partner NBC, a clear sign of underperformance during the season. Using well-informed estimates, it is expected that IndyCar averaged fewer than 850,000 viewers during the 2024 season.
With Fox taking over broadcast responsibilities for 2025, and already delivering the most-watched non-Indy 500 race since 2011, the hope is that viewership will rebound.
The Indianapolis 500 is IndyCar's flagship event, arguably carrying more weight than the championship itself in the US and around the world. Recent viewership has not been representative recently due to bad weather hitting some of the events, most notably last year.
The 2024 race averaged 5.34 million viewers, just the fourth time the five million mark has been breached since 2017. Achieving this while navigating a four-hour weather delay is seriously impressive for IndyCar, which makes this year's debut on Fox all the more hotly anticipated.
