Illinois’ tourism push includes millions for NASCAR events

[September 04, 2025]  By Ben Szalinski

NASCAR will not be returning to Chicago streets next summer as the racing series takes its road act to likely sunnier weather in San Diego following two rain-plagued races out of its three years in Chicago.

But while the innovative race leaves town for at least one year, the state’s fiscal year 2026 budget still contains several millions of dollars for NASCAR. State records obtained by Capitol News Illinois show the state has spent nearly $7 million hosting or sponsoring the sport since 2022.

That includes sponsorship of the Enjoy Illinois 300 scheduled for Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison just across the river from St. Louis. The state-sponsored race is the second playoff race on the Cup Series schedule. It’s one of four NASCAR races scheduled to take place in Illinois this year.

Enjoy Illinois, the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity’s tourism marketing campaign, has been the title sponsor of the race since NASCAR returned to the Metro East track in 2022.

“The event generates significant economic impact through attendee spending on hotels, restaurants, retail, and at other local businesses,” DCEO spokesperson Jordan Troy said in an email. “With the race now part of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, the national exposure has grown even more in turn amplifying our brand visibility to attract new and returning visitors to explore all that Illinois has to offer.”

The state’s sponsorship of this weekend’s race is not its largest NASCAR line item, however.

By the numbers
Enjoy Illinois’ marketing efforts extend beyond the state, with TV ads and billboards promoting Illinois tourism across the nation and world. The state previously launched a $30 million post-pandemic advertising campaign with actress Jane Lynch proclaiming the state as the “middle of everything.”

Enjoy Illinois has a $44 million marketing budget in FY26.

The department has also directed $15 million over recent years to broaden the types of events Illinois holds, pointing to Rockford becoming the host city of an IRONMAN triathlon and the 2026 American Hockey League all-star game.

The state has spent about $2.2 million since 2022 to sponsor the Metro East NASCAR race, including $795,000 for this year’s race, according to state records obtained through an open records request.

State lawmakers separately allocate funding for grants administered by DCEO from various state funds. That’s how funding was provided for the Chicago Street Race, which was held in Grant Park for three years beginning in 2023. State records show NASCAR received a $2 million grant from DCEO in 2023 to build and tear down the track and another $2.5 million for the 2024 race.

The Chicago Street Race marked the first time NASCAR built a track through city streets, which is a more common form of racing for Formula 1 and IndyCar. Grant performance records show NASCAR used the funding to pay a variety of companies, including union laborers, to build and tear down the track and move equipment to and from Grant Park. The reports show the work was completed on time and met the state’s standards for NASCAR to receive funding.

“While the scope and use of those funds were determined by the legislature and the grantee, the state’s involvement provided a valuable opportunity to integrate the Enjoy Illinois brand throughout the race venue, creating national visibility for our tourism campaign,” Troy said, adding the grant funding helped make the race possible given the size of its footprint in Grant Park.

NASCAR did not receive any state funding for the 2025 race, according to DCEO.

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Grant Park in Chicago hosted three NASCAR Cup Series races that were partially funded by grants from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Ben Szalinski)

The state’s fiscal year 2026 budget reappropriates $7 million in grant funding that went unspent in a previous fiscal year and gives DCEO authority to grant another $5 million to NASCAR for “operating expenses.” The funds will not be released by the state until NASCAR provides a budget for the grant with details on how the money will be used.

NASCAR will be back to the Metro East area in 2026 and DCEO’s contract with World Wide Technology Raceway shows Enjoy Illinois has the option to extend its sponsorship to next year’s race.

NASCAR will also be returning to Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet next July for the first time since 2019. A DCEO spokesperson said the department was not involved in any conversations about the sport returning to Joliet. Enjoy Illinois was the title sponsor of the NASCAR Truck Series’ 2013 race at Chicagoland Speedway.

Economic impact
DCEO says its marketing efforts are paying off, and the overarching tourism campaign has directly attracted 2 million additional visitors to the state. The department announced last week 113 million people visited Illinois in 2024 and spent a record $48.5 billion – $1.3 billion more than in 2023 with 500,000 more people visiting the state. Chicago saw a 7.7% increase in overnight visitors.

Enjoy Illinois’ contract for the Sept. 7 race in Madison includes several provisions designed to promote tourism in Illinois.

Enjoy Illinois will get three 30-second advertisements during the TV broadcast on the USA Network, a live interview with an Enjoy Illinois executive on the Motor Racing Network radio broadcast and nine promotional mentions on partner radio stations leading up to the race.

The track has also promised Enjoy Illinois at least three media interviews during the week before the race; sponsorship of fan engagement activities; video board commercials, public address announcements and social media ads; Enjoy Illinois signage around the track; and an Illinois tourism page on the track’s website.

“National cable partnerships like this offer high-impact visibility,” Troy said. “Requiring brand mentions and signage ensures that our tourism message reaches millions of potential travelers in a compelling way.”

NASCAR, the track and Enjoy Illinois also work together to promote the race on various platforms, Troy said.

Other parts of the contract give Enjoy Illinois the right to name a person to wave the green flag at the beginning of the race, the grand marshal, guests to participate in pre-race ride-alongs, and have an Office of Tourism official participate in pre-race and winner’s circle ceremonies, including presenting the trophy to the race winner.

The Enjoy Illinois 300 has sold out each year since it returned in 2022 and generated $60 million of economic activity for the Metro East region, according to DECO. Last year, 2.5 million people watched the race on TV.

The Chicago Street Race had a $128 million economic impact in 2024, according to state contracts – up from $109 million in 2023. Cup Series races both years were delayed and shortened by rain. The 2024 race also generated $9.6 million in state and local tax revenue, according to the Chicago Sports Commission. TV viewership peaked at 4.8 million people in 2023.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.

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