23XI Racing, the NASCAR team co-owned by Michael Jordan, was one of two Cup Series team owners not to sign a charter agreement extension with the sanctioning body by a Friday night deadline, according to multiple reports.
The currentcharterdeals—similar to franchise ownership in other sports—are set to expire at the end of the season. Thirteen groups reportedly signed new, multiyear agreements, leaving 23XI and Front Row Motorsports as the holdouts.
Charters were introduced beginning with the 2016 season, reportedly granting teams that had regularly competed on the circuit about 25% of future media revenues, among other stipulations. Teams also compete for race purse payouts. Unlike most major U.S. sports leagues, NASCAR is privately owned, controlled by the France and Kennedy families. The central organization also owns many racetracks.
Jordan and current driver Denny Hamlin launched 23XI in 2020 with sports executive Curtis Polk. Hamlin has been a loud critic of the current offer on the table.
“There’s probably a handful of teams that are just happy to take any deal that they can get, and there’s others with some business sense that says this is unreasonable,” Hamlin said recently.
Jordan has also shared his frustration. “If our ownership in NASCAR is losing money and NASCAR’s the only one making money, that’s not a good partnership,” hetoldThe New York Timesin May. Jordan added that the sport was at risk of going away completely if the economics weren’t made more attractive for potential investors.
Owners have reportedly pushed for a larger percentage of NASCAR revenue, including more media dollars and a cut of betting-related money, as well as more formal power in the organization and—perhaps most significantly—permanent charter status.
“23XI decided to not meet a NASCAR-imposed deadline last night to sign Charter agreements for its two cars for 2025-2031,” the team said in a public statement. “23XI’s position, as stated in a letter to NASCAR, is that we did not have an opportunity to fairly bargain for a new Charter contract. … We are interested in engaging in constructive discussions with NASCAR to address these issues and move forward in a way that comes to a fair resolution.”
NASCAR recently agreed to $7.7 billion inmedia distribution dealswith Fox, NBC, Warner Bros. Discovery and Amazon for the 2025-2031 seasons.In line with those dates, the NASCAR charter proposalreportedly features a seven-year agreement with an additional seven-year option.
In the past, NASCAR president Steve Phelps has expressed concern that supplemental team earnings would be quickly spent in an on-track arms race for results rather than business development. He’s also said, “we need to make sure our race teams are profitable.” Team owners contend they are losing money under the current system. Earlier in negotiations, the teamshiredleading antitrust lawyer Jeffrey Kessler.
“I think there’s things obviously we would like to have better, but I think to some degree, there’s pieces that we really like, and there’s pieces not so much,” current driver and RFK Racing co-owner Brad Keselowski said of the agreement Saturday. “We felt like it was right to do a deal and move forward.”
Keselowski added that the exploding franchise values in other leagues including the NFL and NBA could be contributing to tensions over NASCAR’s structure.
23XI driver Bubba Wallace has said that his own future with the team remains uncertain until the charter issue is resolved.
Jordan is no stranger to disagreements between league ownership and competitors. He helped NBA players negotiate for a new collective bargaining agreement over the course of a six-month lockout in 1998-99.
He then sat on the other side of the table as Charlotte Hornets owner. “I think having Michael Jordan as part of our negotiating committee, the unique perspective he brings to the bargaining table … has really added a special element unique to this league,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in 2016.
Front Row Motorsports, which has declined to comment on negotiations, is reported to have picked up a third team charter for the 2025 season. Recent slots have sold for $20 million to $40 million.
A NASCAR spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment..
The NASCAR playoffs begin Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway. 23XI driver Tyler Reddick clinched the regular season championship last Sunday at Darlington Raceway.Wallace narrowly missed out on the 16-driver playoff field.
“All we do is compete against each other instead of locking arms and growing the sport together,” Hamlintold theAPthis week. “In my opinion, until we do that, we are just going to continue spinning our tires.”
