In recent news, NASCAR announced that ahead of this summer’s NASCAR Chicago Street Race Weekend, which will return to Grant Park, July 6-7, the Chicago Resource Guide, powered by FanSaves, also returns for a second year.
According to NASCAR, the free guide aims to connect race attendees with local restaurants, lodging, and attractions, in keeping with NASCAR’s mission to drive economic impact throughout Chicagoland.
“NASCAR aims to support the city of Chicago and its economy by putting the best that the city has to offer at the center of the Chicago Street Race Weekend experience,” said Julie Giese, Chicago Street Race president.
“Last year, we were proud to bring in visitors from all 50 states and 15 countries, driving more than $108 million in economic impact in the process – and the Chicago Resource Guide will once again be the perfect platform to connect our fans with these iconic Chicago institutions.”
Local businesses and attractions are still able to sign up to be listed and are encouraged to join the Resource Guide as a way to drive more traffic through their doors during and leading up to Race Weekend.
After a successful delivery last summer, sports tech startup FanSaves has renewed its partnership with the race and will once again deliver fans an online resource guide, connecting attendees to a multitude of local establishments, including restaurants, accommodations, and attractions, added NASCAR.
“We are so happy to continue our partnership with the Chicago Street Race,” said Shannon Ferguson, FanSaves Co-Founder & CEO. “Last year was a great example of how FanSaves is able to drive new traffic into local businesses, and we’re excited to continue building on that and growing the enthusiasm around the Resource Guide throughout Chicago and beyond.”
Canadian-based tech startup FanSaves is a digital couponing platform that gives fans access to discounts and deals from affiliated brands of sports teams, organizations and properties.
In addition to the $108.9 million in overall economic impact, the inaugural Chicago Street Race brought in more than $8.3 million in tax revenues for the city of Chicago.
The 2023 race weekend also drove nearly 30,000 hotel room bookings, supported 750 jobs and delivered more than $23.6 million in media value to Chicago – the equivalent of more than three national Super Bowl ads for the city, according to an economic impact report commissioned by Choose Chicago with Temple University’s Sports Industry Research Center (SIRC).
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago.