NASCAR has spent years experimenting with new platforms, content formats, race environments, and ways to understand its fans. But one of its biggest lessons has been knowing what NOT to change.

Tim Clark, EVP and Chief Brand Officer at NASCAR, joins Dave to talk about the tension at the center of modern fan engagement: evolving how people discover, experience, and interact with a sport without losing the identity that made its most loyal fans care in the first place. He shares how NASCAR is thinking differently about content distribution, gaming, live events, and the value of knowing who its digital fans actually are.

Tim also explains why YouTube has become such an important part of NASCAR’s strategy for reaching younger audiences, how the “Hell Yeah” campaign emerged from a renewed confidence in the brand’s roots, and why traffic alone is becoming a less meaningful measure of digital success.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why Tim thinks sports organizations are misdiagnosing Gen Z’s “attention span” problem
• NASCAR’s biggest youth acquisition channels and what they are learning about YouTube
• What NASCAR learned from turning a football stadium and an active naval base into race venues
• Why NASCAR is willing to accept less total digital traffic if a larger share of those fans are identifiable
• What happened when NASCAR stopped being embarrassed by tailgating, coolers, and “keg stands”

Resources and Links:

Connect with Tim Clark on LinkedIn.

Learn more about Next League on our website and LinkedIn. We are leading sports organizations into the digital future.

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