Beech Tree News Network

Have you ever watched a NASCAR race, baseball game or any other sporting event and wondered how a sponsorship works? It seems like there’s nothing in NASCAR without a sponsor.  From cars covered in logos and stickers to drivers having patches on their uniforms, it’s all over the place.  The question: Where does all the money go?
Being a primary sponsor of a team costs $350,000-$500,000 per race.  Corporations can usually cut a deal to sponsor a team for a full season.  That means sponsors get to choose the paint scheme of the car, put the logo all over it, and use the drivers likeness in advertising for the product or service they want to promote.  It is possible to be the primary sponsor for just one race, and for a half-a-million dollar investment, the car will change appearance for just that one venue. 
NASCAR has a long-standing relationship with sponsors.  In the earliest races of the 1950’s and 60’s, what few sponsors there were didn’t even put logos on their cars, and they were mostly auto-related businesses.  But in 1972, R.J. Reynolds bought the rights to name the series, which became the Winston Cup Series.  Soon after, Richard Petty’s light-blue #43 car was famously sponsored by STP, an oil additive.  Over three decades, sponsorship has evolved past alcohol, tobacco and auto companies of the early years to include the likes of M&M’s and GoDaddy.com. 
Winston was the sponsor from 1971-2003 when it was formally named Nextel Cup.  Monster Energy became the title sponsor in 2017.  Clearly, sponsorship is all about the money.  Makes me wonder how much longer Monster Energy will be the primary sponsor.  They do have the Monster Energy girls, which I’m sure brings some extra eyes to NASCAR.  Likely the TV instead of the track.  Have you seen those prices?
Sponsorship is a game, a very expensive game.