Sponsor money hasn’t been one of the most free-flowing assets in NASCAR in recent years. The decline of the sport’s popularity on a global scale has led companies like Mars, Mountain Dew, and Subway to quit their involvement with stock car racing. But one brand that has chosen to walk down the opposite route by betting on the sport is the retail chain The Kroger Company.
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The company’s latest move was to sign the 2025 sponsorship papers for all three cars of RFK Racing. Kroger Racing will be the primary sponsor for Brad Keselowski’s No. 6 car, Chris Buescher’s No. 17 car, and the new recruit Ryan Preece’s No. 60 car.
This step has been viewed as monumental in racing circles considering that it is only recently that major players like FedEx decided to leave the sport.
So, what is it that Kroger Racing sees that other brands don’t? Brent Cox, the Director of Health and Baby Care at Kroger, answered in a recent press conference, “I think we’ve got great brands in this program from Kimberly-Clark to Kraft to Coca-Cola. These are all blue chip brands that we’ve got built into this program, but I think they see the value in racing.”
“They see the value in this customer and the way we market this program on track and off track and really bring that to life.” He added that it was all about “selling cases and winning races.”
Without question, the company’s participation ought to be highly appreciated. Bringing together the brands that are under its umbrella to work towards a single cause is no easy task.
The multiple brands that are under Kroger Racing
The Kroger Company is a company that operates a number of supermarkets and department stores across the country. Its affiliation with RFK Racing will bring some major names on top of three entries. Some of them are Coca-Cola, Heinz Ketchup, Kleenex, and Celsius Essential Energy.
This effort is not for the financially weak. Sponsoring a Cup Series team, let alone three, required a significantly large checkbook. But it is also interesting that the cost of sponsorship has gone down by large over the last decade.
According to a 2023 report from the Sports Business Journal, a full-season sponsorship with the best drivers would cost somewhere between $25 million and $35 million. Today the figure would only be between $10 million and $20 million. Hopefully, Kroger gets its money’s worth and continues investing in the sport.
