Anchorman Meets NASCAR
For the last decade, NASCAR has been building tracks near big cities such as Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, and Las Vegas, attracting corporate sponsorship from blue chip companies, and promoting the the increasing diversity of its core of drivers--all to transform the circuit from a regionally based niche sport in the south to arguably one of the four major sports in the U.S. market. NASCAR's strategic repositioning as a mainstream American entertainment is no more evident than in the release this weekend of the film Talledega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, starring former Saturday Night Live comedian Will Ferrell. Ferrell plays an aspiring NASCAR driver who represents the sport and its current stars in a self-deprecating fashion. Whether Ferrell gives an Oscar winning performance is probably irrelevant. What is important is that NASCAR will likely benefit from the cross sector exposure in an industry other than sports, a strategy that has the advantage of connecting with a much wider audience. In this case, the choice of Ferrell, who appeals to the coveted male 18-34 market because of his past roles in Old School, Anchorman, and Wedding Crashers is a principal driver in the cross sectoring strategy. It remains to be seen whether these types of films will emerge as a trend across all sports, but because of the fragmentation and competition in the marketplace, the use of film to generate exposure in popular culture may likely be worth the investment.
