NASCAR introduced the charter system in 2016 which allowed 36 guaranteed entries and more in the Cup Series. Since then, it has boomed in price and created a new scenario where the teams want a significant change.
According to Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern, the organizations within the sport are looking to make the charter system permanent. The current deal expires at the conclusion of the 2024 season.
As of late 2022, the asking price of acquiring one of the 36 charters was around $30 million. There have been zero charter transactions during the 2022 off-season due to the very high demand price.
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NASCAR organizations looking to make the charter system permanent with next TV deal
The charter system was given a nine-year contract to run it through the rest of the current TV deal in an effort to evaluate the process and how it is working. Well, the results have been incredible for the race teams.
In reality, the system is not perfect as there are teams, such as JR Motorsports, that want to enter the NASCAR Cup Series but cannot because of a multitude of reasons surrounding the charter system.
The price of acquiring a charter is not reasonable for those who want to enter the sport’s top level and not many organizations are willing to part ways with a charter. Any team without a charter in the Cup Series eventually dies out.
However, would these teams and owners still want to be a part of the Cup Series if the charters did not exist? It is a valid question to ask and one that could even relate to teams such as 23XI Racing, Trackhouse Racing, and Kaulig Racing.
In fact, the topic of the charter system was discussed during the State of the Sport address last December. NASCAR President Steve Phelps had this to say when discussing the system itself.
“We have people out there that want to get charters who are both in the sport and are outside of the sport that can’t get them right now because the teams are holding them. That’s their right. Whether we want that to happen or not, there’s nothing we can do about that. To answer your question fully, do I think we’ll extend the charters? I do. Do I think it’s a good thing for the sport? I do.”
Steve Phelps on the charter system
Phelps said what has already been discussed in this article up to the final few sentences. It seems likely that NASCAR will extend the charter system beyond the 2024 season and they believe it is a good thing for the sport.
Therefore, it makes all of the sense in the world to make the charter system a permanent idea moving forward. NASCAR could obviously make some tweaks; however, charters feel like they are here to stay.