With a $217B sponsor gone, NASCAR strikes a star-studded Busch Light deal and teams up with multi-Grammy winner Zac Brown Band

In January, $217 billion worth (via Forbes) McDonald’s, the first founding partner of the NASCAR Chicago Street Race, ended its three-year deal with NASCAR early. However, just recently, NASCAR landed another lucrative deal with Anheuser-Busch besides teaming up for a star-studded performance ahead of this year’s event.

As per reports, multi-Grammy Award-winning Southern rock band Zac Brown Band will perform at the new Busch Light Summer Series Stage, next to the start-finish line. NASCAR and Busch Light are also expected to launch a new Busch Light summer music series this year.

The annual music series includes five pre-race concerts throughout the season, starting in Chicago in July. The remaining four performances will be at Texas Motor Speedway in May, Michigan International Speedway in June, Iowa Speedway in August, and World Wide Technology Raceway in September.

Anheuser-Busch has been an ally of NASCAR for over four decades. Their partnership dates back to the 1970s when the former sponsored the “Busch Light Pole Award.”

“The partnership between NASCAR and Busch Light is consistently noted as one of the most recognized in all of sports each and every year,” Michelle Byron, NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Partnership and Licensing Officer, said during a recent interview. “Anheuser-Busch’s longstanding relationships at multiple levels across our sport have been paramount in cultivating new fans and driving fan loyalty for decades.”

The multi-year partnership will allow Busch Light to be the “Official Beer Sponsor of NASCAR” and the title sponsor for the sport’s pole award. This year’s race is scheduled for July 6 at 2 pm ET. Fans can watch it live on TNT Sports or listen to radio updates on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

NASCAR insider explains why the sport should return to COTA in 2026

Last Sunday, February 2, NASCAR held its first road course race of the year at Circuit of The Americas, also known as COTA by the racing aficionados. Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell won the event, marking his second consecutive win of the season.

In the latest episode of The Teardown, The Athletic’s Jordan Bianchi explained why NASCAR should return to the world-class road course in Austin, Texas. He said:

“Great market, drivers love the track, world-class facility. The track seems to put a lot into this. They’re building a freaking amusement park there. They reinvest in that. You put on great racing.”

COTA made it to NASCAR’s schedule for the first time in 2021. In late 2024, the track’s original layout was reduced from 3.41 miles to 2.3 miles, to bring more track action.

“Sponsors want to be there. I’ve talked to so many teams, and they’re like, ‘Listen, we have sponsors that circle this. This is a big market for them because they want to bring people to Austin and do the Austin thing, and then we bring them out to the track, and it’s a world-class facility,” Bianchi further noted.

Whether NASCAR returns to COTA next year is yet to be decided. It is preparing for next week’s race at Phoenix Raceway. Scheduled for March 9, the 312-lap event will feature on Fox Sports 1 with live radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio from 3:30 pm ET onwards.