Auto Racing is the spectator sport involving racing automobiles, an extremely popular and exhilarating competition. And in the fast paced world of auto racing, not many names are ubiquitous and enduring as NASCAR.
NASCAR, or National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, is a family owned and run organization sanctioning stock car racing all across North America. Founded over 70 years ago, NASCAR has grown to become one of the most popular sports leagues in general, drawing in audiences from around the world. However, while NASCAR has a strong reputation for producing a high level of racing competition, its less than noble history and origins have clung to it to this day.
NASCAR and stock car racing as a sport has its roots in the Southern parts of the US during the Prohibition of 1920 that constitutionally banned alcohol across the country. In response to this law, bootlegging, or the smuggling of alcohol became fairly commonplace.
These bootleggers, called moonshiners due to high demand of moonshine at the time, would illegally transport and distribute alcohol in the back roads of cities. In order to evade police vehicles, moonshiners would ‘soup up’ or make custom modifications to their vehicles, and the drivers themselves would become incredibly adept at driving, as they would move at high speeds in tight roads in the dark with no headlights.
However, once the prohibition ended in 1933, the need for bootlegging declined, leaving moonshiners to put their skills to test by racing one another. By the 40s, these unregulated unorganized races between former moonshiners and other enthusiasts using souped up vehicles became popular entertainment in the South.
The Founder
Bill France was a prohibition era mechanic that had an interest in stock car racing at the time, even taking part in many races. After taking a back seat from racing to promoting, Bill eventually went about founding NASCAR, having recognized how the lack of rules and regulations have led to drivers being taken advantage of.
Being organized helped boost the popularity of stock car racing, even reaching Canada at points, but the sport was inherently still believed to be a Southern sport, not really finding real mainstream popularity. However, by the 80s, thanks to the advent of cable TV, NASCAR events were regularly televised across the nation, drawing in a massive audience.
The cars used in races also evolved from stock cars, production line models modified for racing, to actual race cars built for NASCAR racing. NASCAR would hit its peak in the mid 2000s, with TV viewerships of their televised races reaching record highs.
Recently, however, NASCAR has seen a steady decline in popularity. Despite the massive improvements in the vehicles, drivers and promotion, NASCAR saw its lowest viewership yet in 2018 and live attendance has also suffered.
Many factors have contributed towards this, a lot of which is attributed to the France family’s decision making, especially the CEO and chairman from 2003 to 2018, Brian France.
Backlash
Accusations of match fixing were thrown around. The introduction of the fifth generation NASCAR car, the Car of Tomorrow received heavy backlash from both drivers and fans alike for having no differences between manufacturers and drawing further and further away from NASCAR’s stock car roots, alienating the community.
Outside of the NASCAR community, NASCAR is mocked for being a redneck spectator sport, due to its Southern origins. This was not helped by the organization allowing the controversial Confederate flag to fly during races, a decision that lasted until 2020, when it was finally prohibited. Though this was largely seen as a positive move outside of the NASCAR community, internally it only served to push its majority Southern, conservative fans further away.
