- Prime Video’s exclusive broadcast drew younger viewers but lost many longtime fans.
- Nearly 750,000 viewers aged 55+ did not tune in to the Coca-Cola 600.
- NASCAR President Steve Phelps says the shift is strategic and here to stay.
NASCAR’s decision to stream the 2025 Coca-Cola 600 exclusively on Amazon Prime Video has sparked frustration among a core segment of its fan base. For the first time in the sport’s history, a top-tier Cup Series race required a paid streaming subscription — a major shift from the free-to-air and cable broadcasts fans have relied on for decades.
Although the broadcast quality earned praise and drew 2.7 million viewers, the move alienated many older, loyal supporters. A significant number of them either couldn’t navigate streaming platforms or couldn’t justify another monthly fee.
Even NASCAR President Steve Phelps laid out a clear message defending the strategy:
“Streaming is important. It’s here to stay, and we think that Amazon Prime is a terrific partner for us to be with, and you’re kind of defined by the company you keep, right? The NFL, NBA, ourself – that’s a good adjacency for us. I think they’re going to bring a fresh approach, which they certainly did with ‘Thursday Night Football’ and I think it will drive a slightly younger audience for us, which that’s not a bad thing either.”
The aim is clear: modernise the sport and connect with younger fans. But the cost of that move has not gone unnoticed.
The impact on older viewers was significant. Reports show that nearly 750,000 fans aged 55 and up did not watch the Coca-Cola 600 on Prime. Many of these fans have been loyal to the sport for decades, watching every week and contributing to NASCAR’s growth during its peak years.
Alex Strand, Senior Coordinating Producer at Prime Video, acknowledged the concerns but stressed their intent:
“To me, it’s less about streaming than people might think. In the end, our goal is fan first. Whether that’s Thursday Night Football, National Women’s Soccer League, or NASCAR, we’re really fan first.”
While younger demographics did tune in, the data tells a quiet story: NASCAR’s average viewer age dropped by six years. It’s the kind of metric stakeholders love to see, but the sentiment behind it is more complex. Some of the sport’s most dedicated supporters were effectively priced out or technologically left behind.
FOX Sports’ Michael Mulvihill summed it up bluntly:
“It’s easy to look younger when you lose 5 older people for every 1 younger viewer you gain.”
For NASCAR, the challenge now is to balance future growth with loyalty to the community that helped build the sport. The broadcast experiment with Amazon Prime may have delivered fresh insights and technical polish, but the emotional cost — for now — is being felt in comment sections across the country.
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