International Speedway Corporation (ISCA), Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (TRK): Three Ways to Make Tons of Money Owning a NASCAR Track

Broadcasting revenue
Aside from admissions sales, broadcasting revenue is one of the prime ways for NASCAR track owners to bring in revenue. Broadcasting revenue includes radio and television transmission of the races from any of the tracks that Dover, Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (NYSE:TRK), or  International Speedway Corporation (NASDAQ:ISCA) owns.

Auto Club Speedway (formerly California Speedway). Source: Soldiersmediacenter (Creative Commons).

In NASCAR, 65% of the money the association brings in from selling the rights to broadcasters goes to the tracks. The money is then divided based on a three-tier system — with the most of the money theoretically going to the tracks with the largest markets, biggest ratings, and historical significance.

In the second quarter of 2013, Dover Motorsports reported more than $15 million in broadcasting revenue — up from $14.4 million year over year. And in 2013, Speedway Motorsports, Inc. (NYSE:TRK) is expected to earn $199 million from broadcasting revenue alone. The nice part about broadcasting revenue for the track owners is that it’s an almost-guaranteed moneymaker, even if attendance is down.

NBC just signed a $4.4 billion deal with NASCAR back in July to start broadcasting races in 2015. That deal came as ESPN is ending its eight-year broadcasting run with the association. The Sports Business Journal reported that ESPN decided not to bid for the broadcasting rights because of declining NASCAR viewership. So as attendance is dropping and TV ratings are down, it seems that while still making large sums of money, track owners will need to continue to adapt their business model to keep the racing sport lucrative.

The article 3 Ways to Make Tons of Money Owning a NASCAR Track originally appeared on Fool.com is written by Chris Neiger.

Fool contributor Chris Neiger has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends International Speedway.

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