NASCAR is partnering up with a high-profile name. The sanctioning body is trying to find a new sponsor for its Xfinity Series and is turning toward one of the biggest names in the sports business to make that happen. Founded by Rich Paul, Klutch Sports Group is well known for representing 4x NBA Champion LeBron James, along with several other iconic athletes such as Dallas Mavericks’ Anthony Davis and Golden State Warriors’ 4x NBA Champion Draymond Green.

Klutch Sports has now been hired by the stock car racing series as the exclusive sales agency for the Xfinity Series! With a decade-long association finally coming to an end, will NASCAR manage to find another lucrative sponsor for the sport’s second tier? It will all depend on Klutch, who has an enormous opportunity on their hands to make their mark in the motorsports world.

NASCAR hopes that its faith in Klutch Sports Group will pay off

Finding stable sponsorships is hard to come by in NASCAR. Just ask Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin, who was forced to let go of FedEx last year, ending an association that has existed since 2005. It seems like NASCAR is in the same boat now, as they are looking for a new sponsor to replace Xfinity, as the naming rights deal will end in 2025. Klutch Sports Group is no stranger to the world of stock car racing, having previously worked on things like merchandise and bringing influencers to races.

However, finding a new sponsor will be an entirely new challenge altogether, especially in the current economic climate. Explaining the reasoning behind choosing the Klutch Sports Group, NASCAR’s Chief Commercial Officer Craig Stimmel said, “It was pretty clear they’d be a great fit not only with what they do day to day, but (also) culturally with us and how we approach the business.”

Even though Stimmel spoke to several agencies before making his decision, the decision came down to Klutch diversifying its business and moving into the world of motorsports for the first time by signing IndyCar driver Josef Newgarden. NASCAR will be looking for a sponsor which will pay around $15 million a year as part of the deal. $10 million of that will be rights fees while a mid seven-figure amount will be dedicated to marketing and activation as per some sources familiar with the deal.

Back in 2015, Xfinity replaced Nationwide as the title sponsor. The decade-long deal was worth $200 million, or $20 million per year. It matched NASCAR’s expectations, as the sanctioning body wanted $12–15 million every year in annual rights fees, plus activation that would take it to roughly $25 million per year. Now, the expectation is that the Klutch Sports Group will deliver so that the sport can not just match those numbers but improve on them, given the NASCAR’s growth and the figures adjusted for inflation.

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Klutch Sports Group weighs in on new partnership

It’s not truly a goodbye to Xfinity, even though they won’t be a title sponsor anymore. Earlier this year, the company signed a one-year renewal of the Xfinity Series naming rights, which will end in 2025. They will also be NASCAR’s ‘premier partner’ for the foreseeable future, joining the likes of Coca-Cola and Busch Beer. The sanctioning body has room for another partner or two, especially after Geico left last year. Could Klutch Sports Group be entrusted with that responsibility as well?

Sharing his thoughts about the tie-up, Klutch’s Head of Global Partnerships, Andrew Feinberg said, “(Racing) is something Klutch has been interested in getting into and sinking our teeth in; motorsports has become incredibly popular, particularly over the last couple years with some of the content that’s come out, but it’s been a no-brainer for us to want to partner with Craig and NASCAR because of how partner forward this league has been historically, and it’s probably one of the more passionate fan bases that we’ve seen in sports to this day and will continue to be so.”

Ever since the 2008 financial crisis, sponsorships have been somewhat of a challenge in the NASCAR world. However, if 2025 is anything to go by, that trend is slowly changing. Red Bull is back in the sport for the first time since 2011, tying up with Trackhouse Racing. The likes of Chipotle, Robinhood, and Cracker Barrel have also joined or returned to the sport, indicating positive signs in a tough economy. Will that make Klutch Sports Group’s job of finding a replacement for Xfinity easier? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!