NASCAR took home honors as ‘Event of the Year’ for the first-ever Chicago Street Race, during the 2024 Sports Business Awards, hosted by Sports Business Journal in New York City, celebrating the best in sports business over the past year.
The award, which highlights the most outstanding events in sports, was recognition for one of the most ambitious events in NASCAR history, according to NASCAR.
The Chicago Street Race, a first-of-its-kind, two-day sports and entertainment event, saw stock cars take to city streets for the first time in the sport’s 75-year history, resulting in extraordinary levels of fan engagement, including more than 80 percent of ticket buyers attending a NASCAR event for the first time; the most-watched Cup Series race on NBC in six years; and an economic impact of more than $108.9 million for the local Chicago community.
“We’re incredibly proud of the first-ever Chicago Street Race, and we’re honored to have Sports Business Journal recognize it as the ‘Event of The Year’,” said Steve Phelps, President, NASCAR.
“Following the leadership of Ben Kennedy, Julie Giese and many others, the entire NASCAR industry and the city of Chicago banded together to pull off something truly extraordinary that has opened up an entirely new world of possibility for this sport moving forward. We can’t wait to get back to Chicago for the second running this July.”
In approximately 12 months lead time, NASCAR established an event that was not just a race in Chicago but was an event about and for Chicago – an opportunity to showcase the best of one of the world’s most recognizable cities on a global scale.
From local artists designing the race-winning trophies to becoming ingrained in the community through local partnerships with organizations like Chicago Public Schools, the Art Institute of Chicago, After School Matters and All Kids Bike, NASCAR quickly became a pillar of the community and invested nearly $2 million in local initiatives throughout Chicago.
NASCAR immediately established a new, permanent Chicago office in November of 2022 following the announcement that NASCAR would be coming to the city. Led by longtime executive and track president Julie Giese, the office currently has nearly 20 full-time employees, all of whom live and work year-round in the community, NASCAR added.
Joining the Chicago Street Race as finalists for the ‘Event of the Year’ award were the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, NHL Stadium Series, Super Bowl LVIII, U.S. Open Tennis Championships and the World Baseball Classic.
As part of the ceremony, NASCAR was also recognized as a finalist for ‘League of the Year,’ and NASCAR’s new media rights deal was a finalist for ‘Deal of the Year.’.
Chicago Street Race:
The Chicago Street Race is a unique two-day sports and entertainment event with a festival-like atmosphere that exemplifies NASCAR’s characteristic fan experience that puts attendees closer to the action than any other sport. The Chicago Street Race Weekend is a once-in-a-lifetime experiential opportunity for any sports, music and entertainment fan.
NASCAR has single-day ticketing options starting at $150. NASCAR also offers Youth General Admission Pricing for children 12 and under that are free on Saturday, July 6, and Youth GA tickets for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race are $45. Two-day reserved tickets starting at $465 offer an array of opportunities that include reserved seating and a wide variety of premium experiences. Two-day general admission tickets start at $269.
For a complete listing of ticketing options or to purchase tickets, fans can visit NASCARChicago.com or call 888-629-7223.
Fans can also visit:
NASCARChicagoExperiences.com for multiple options for travel, tickets, and hospitality experiences, courtesy of Quint, the Travel and Experience Package Provider of the Chicago Street Race.
To stay up to date with the Chicago Street Race, fans can subscribe to receive exclusive Chicago Street Race emails, follow @NASCARChicago on X and Facebook and download the NASCAR Tracks App for the latest real-time updates on all aspects of the event.
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago.
