Daytona Beach, FL (September 10, 2021) – Today, NASCAR will join Global Sports Venture Studio’s (GSVS) growing set of partners that includes an elite group of sports leagues, teams and brands, to deliver on its innovation goals. GSVS is a joint venture between R/GA Ventures and the L.A. Dodgers’ Elysian Park Ventures. It brings together leaders from the world’s top sports organizations to identify, develop, and operationalize new athlete and fan experiences through startup pilots and investments and the development of new products, services, and technologies.
GSVS provides its partners with cross-collaboration learning and opportunities, access to cutting-edge startups, and private programming centered around critical topics shaping the sports industry’s future, including the importance of youth sports, the power of data, the rise of sports betting, and more. GSVS will partner with NASCAR to develop a strategy that can help them deliver on their innovation vision by tapping into the global startup ecosystem.
“We look forward to having a dedicated innovation partner to help us identify emerging tech solutions to enhance the overall fan experience. Our goal is to generate new energy and ideas to spark engagement with our brand, and ultimately grow the fandom of our sport. Collaborating with a leader in the space such as GSVS will help us do just that.” said Ben Kennedy, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Innovation.
NASCAR reinvented its corporate strategic arm by introducing a Strategy & Innovation team earlier this year. Together, NASCAR and GSVS plan to lead the transformation that is imperative to the continued success of the global sports industry and specifically motorsports. This includes seizing opportunities for innovation to enhance the fan experience at home or at the track and to gain deeper insights for drivers through data and performance science.
“We are excited to expand our partner set to be inclusive of the world of auto racing. NASCAR’s focus on impactful fan engagement is perfectly aligned with GSVS and other partner’s priorities, and we are excited by the challenge of bringing them inspiring solutions to grow their commitment to innovation,” said Kyle Bunch, VP, Managing Director of GSVS.
NASCAR is also very excited to be partnered with the Global Sports Venture Studio as they gear up for their new NASCAR Cup Series coming in 2022 and the debut of its Next Gen car.
About GSVS
The Global Sports Venture Studio brings together leaders from the world’s leading sports organizations to engage with the sports innovation ecosystem. Our partners–including Angel City FC, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Fox Sports, LAFC, Levy Restaurants, the Los Angeles Dodgers, UEFA, the USTA, and Verizon–are actively working together to drive growth in the sports industry by identity, develop, and deploy new athlete and fan-focused innovations through pilots, investments, and the development of new products, services, and technologies.
About NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States and owner of 16 of the nation’s major motorsports entertainment facilities. NASCAR consists of three national series (NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series™), three regional series, one local grassroots series, three international series and the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. NASCAR also owns Motor Racing Network, Racing Electronics, Americrown Service and ONE DAYTONA. Based in Daytona Beach, Florida, with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).
Media Contact
Melanie Mahaffey
melanie.mahaffey@rga.com