- Chicago Street Race is not confirmed on Nascar schedule beyond 2025
- Other three founding partners remain attached to race
McDonald’s is ending its partnership with Nascar’s Chicago Street Race after two years, according to Sports Business Journal (SBJ).
The fast food giant was the first founding partner for the race which debuted in 2023, paying around US$2 million annually alongside the other three partners.
McDonald’s originally agreed a three-year deal but has reportedly opted to exit from the agreement early. It is unclear why the company chose to cut short its relationship with Nascar.
The other partners – ABB, BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois and Xfinity – remain listed on Nascar Chicago’s partner page portion of its website and are expected to remain attached to the race.
The Chicago Street Race does not yet have a future on the Nascar schedule beyond 2025 and the disruption caused by the event has been controversial with locals. This year’s race takes place on 6th July.
McDonald’s will not be severing its ties with Nascar entirely though, as the company will continue as a major sponsor of 23XI Racing.
Related posts
- The Chicago Street Race: Three things that were different about Nascar’s newest event
- Nascar and Chicago reach verbal agreement over additional US$2m for 2024 street race
BlackBook says…
The debut Chicago Street Race was a hit in 2023, but last year’s race struggled due to inclement weather. With Nascar executives not prepared to discuss the future of the race, it is unclear how much longevity this event has.
Losing a company like McDonald’s is certainly a hit for the race and a failure to replace the financial support could spell the end for Nascar’s first-ever street race.
But Nascar is showing that it is prepared to do things differently with a debut race in Mexico City this season, so even if this slot opens up on the calendar once more it can be used as another positive step for growth – maybe even internationally.
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