We do not get many spur-of-the-moment reasons to write these days, but Tuesday's news about IndyCar's new television deal starting in 2022 is worthy of our immediate attention.
On the surface, it appears not much will change as IndyCar will remain on the NBC airwaves, but this extension will not be status quo for the series. A few changes need to be highlighted.
The Deal At-A-Glance
IndyCar and NBC agreed to a multi-year extension starting with the 2022 season. The two sides were in the final year of a three-year exclusive agreement.
Starting in 2022, NBC will broadcast at least 13 races with the remaining events being shown on USA Network and the streaming platform Peacock Premium. Peacock Premium will show two races exclusively in 2022, but every race, regardless of if it is broadcasted on NBC or USA, will also be available on Peacock Premium.
Peacock Premium will continue broadcasting IndyCar practice and qualifying as well as the Indy Lights races.
Also new is Telemundo Deportes will provide Spanish-language coverage of the season opener, Indianapolis 500, and season finale next year. The door was also left open for more races being shown on Telemundo.
How is this different from the current deal?
The number of races on big NBC will increase from nine in 2021 to 13 in 2022. We will go from just over half the races on network television to over 75% of the races in one year. Let's not forget it was only three years ago when only five races were on network television. IndyCar has almost tripled its network television profile in a four-year span.
All the races will be available on Peacock, a big change as currently the only thing available on Peacock were the practice and qualifying sessions. A person will no longer need a cable subscription to see the entire IndyCar season. If you have Peacock, you can see all the races, and they will likely be available commercial-free. You will not have to worry about pre-empted races or races rushed off the air due to running long.
What should we make of the length?
When IndyCar and NBC first agreed to its exclusive partnership it was introduced as a multi-year deal and multi-year turned out to be three years. The number three was not mentioned with this new contract, but I think it is safe to say this will either be a two-year or three-year deal and NBC will be IndyCar's home until at least 2023 or 2024. I fully expect it is a three-year agreement.
Should I be concerned with Peacock?
The one thing that people have dwelled on with this new contract is two races will exclusively be on Peacock. That means they will not be on NBC or USA. The only way to see them are on Peacock. Those angriest at this can't seem to see beyond the fact that 13 RACES!!! will be on network television and to these people two Peacock races are the worst crime against humanity.
It is tough to accept that two races will only be available via a streaming platform, but the same people who are upset that IndyCar races have commercials are now upset two IndyCar races will only be available commercial-free on Peacock. In fact, every race will be available commercial-free on Peacock, and these are the same people who for the longest time have been saying they wish IndyCar would leave NBC and have its own streaming platform that they would pay for.
Guess what hypocrites? Everything your heart desires will be on Peacock. There are no more reasons to bitch and moan about it. Your wish has come true, stop being so upset about getting what you want.
In all seriousness, I am not sure how successful two Peacock races will be, and it does look like a step back, even in this increasingly digital world. We still measure popularity and success based on television channels and availability. Peacock races feel like IndyCar is removing itself from the landscape. These races will go on and, unless you are in-tune with the series, most people will miss these races. It is only two races and not five or eight or ten, but it is hiding enough from the masses that it isn't a great thing. The last thing IndyCar should want is to have a thrilling race that no one knows happened.
But if we are living in an evolving digital world, we have to accept this day was always coming. We see a lot of events available only via streaming platforms. Thursday Night Football games for the NFL will only be available via Amazon Prime starting in 2022. Major League Baseball has a game of the week available only on YouTube. This is a big change for IndyCar, but it is only two races, and two races is a good trial size. They might try it in 2022, see it is not a success, and abandon it for 2023. It could turn out these two races draw respectable audiences and everyone, from the series to the teams, sponsors to NBC, deem it a success.
Streaming-only races were bound to happen and I believe this is the best time for it. We must at least find out if they are viable.
Is this for the best of IndyCar?
As of right now, yes, because I don't think IndyCar can demand much more from any broadcast company.
The ratings have seen an increase with NBC, especially this season, but it is still a series drawing just over a million viewers per race. Those aren't incredible numbers. The series is not able to demand $200 million a year from a broadcaster with only a million viewers per race. That transformational wealth is not coming to the series to pump it up and lead to nine new teams and 20 new entries at every race. As much as the series was hoping to see a raise from this television deal, the gains are too incremental to really warrant an increase in cash flow.
It also didn't help that there didn't appear to be any major pursuer outside of NBC. CBS was mentioned at one point but quickly withdrew itself without even an offer becoming public. It is not a good thing that there wasn't a bidding war, but a two or three-year commitment with NBC suggests IndyCar is hoping it can get a big pay day after the 2023 or 2024 season. At that point we will have a new set of regulations and hopefully another manufacture or two in the series. There could be more for the series to sell and draw more interest.
Staying with NBC for another two or three years is a positive for IndyCar, especially for the Indianapolis 500. After spending over 50 years on one network, IndyCar needed to build some longevity with NBC and the Indianapolis 500. IndyCar cannot afford to be bouncing from network to network and lacking an established platform. I think if you change networks too often, viewers lose track of where to find the races and that hurts a series.
A second contract is a good thing. NBC sees value in IndyCar. The Indianapolis 500 has received major event treatment on NBC, as the race has had extended pre-race coverage and it is valued as a major piece to NBC Sports along with the Kentucky Derby, French Open tennis tournament and golf's U.S. Open and The Open Championship.
We also cannot overstate 13 races will be on network television! That is much more exposure for the sponsors, the teams, the drivers, and the manufactures. That is a significant number for IndyCar, and I don't believe there has been a season with this many races on network television, not even during the hey-days of CART in the 1990s.
The Telemundo portion of the deal should also not be overlooked, and I am surprised it has taken this long for IndyCar to have a Spanish-language broadcaster. Back in 2011, Telemundo was on the side of Oriol Servià's car when Servià drove for Newman/Haas Racing, and I thought IndyCar needed that Spanish-language component then. Within three years, IndyCar had Juan Pablo Montoya back in the series and leading a Colombian charge with Carlos Muñoz, Carlos Huertas and Sébastien Saavedra in the series. E.J. Viso was also a series regular during that time. Gabby Chaves would join the series not long after that. Patricio O'Ward is IndyCar's first big Mexican star in over 15 years and the series even had Esteban Gutiérrez compete for a few races.
Spanish-speaking drivers are common in the series, and I have felt IndyCar has been missing the Spanish-speaking audience for some time. I am not sure what kind of numbers IndyCar could draw with a Spanish-language broadcast. It depends who is on the grid but consider that the Mexico-El Salvador CONCACAF Gold Cup soccer game on Sunday night drew 3.79 million viewers on Univision. I know that is soccer between two Spanish-speaking countries, but if O'Ward can become a star and another driver emerges from Central America or South America or perhaps Álex Palou gathers a following, who is to say IndyCar couldn't draw 500,000 people watching in Spanish? That would be a great thing for the series, especially if those 500,000 people are in addition to the 1.3 million people already watching.
For the last few seasons, many have mentioned IndyCar has been in a golden era. Some of the best drivers we have ever seen are on the grid, the field is more competitive than it has ever been and the races themselves have had more action and been more compelling. Now the series has arguably more exposure than any previous television contract. I am not sure how long things will continue to go up, but the last five or six years have paid off for IndyCar with this contract.
