This month we will take a look at the business assistance package what were available during the pandemic.

The unprecedented shutdown caused by the coronavirus severely impacted the operations of most sports and entertainment entities.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act was signed into law which created several programs designed to support companies in different ways.

The Paycheck Protections Program (PPP) was designed to provide a direct incentive to small businesses to keep their employees on the payroll. The Small Business Administration would forgive the loans if certain retention criteria were met and funds were used for eligible expenses (payroll, rent, etc.). 

To qualify for the program, companies would have to less then 500 employees, use 75% of the funds for payroll. 

Companies would apply for the loan thru lenders participating in the program. There original deadline was late June but was extended to early August.

Loan size would be up to $10 million, term of two years, interest rate at 1%, and not personal guarantees and collateral were required.  The loans would be forgivable if certain criteria were met (maintaining head count, rehiring employees, and maintaining salary levels.)  

The PPP was funded with $659 billion.  There were almost 5 million companies approved. 

Recipients from the sports industry made the list of those receiving funds. There were approximately 600 sports organizations that received loans, totaling $665 million and preserving approximately 36,000 jobs.

None of the major leagues – NFL, NBA, NBA, and NHL applied. It is believed that NASCAR Holdings, LLC and Penske/IndyCar/IMS did not participate because they may have exceeded the employee size threshold.

Specifically, for motorsports, there were approximately 65 companies approved for $78.5 million in loans which would retain almost 4,000 jobs.

The list included about twenty related NASCAR teams, eight IndyCar teams, four IMSA teams, and four tracks and sanctioning bodies.

The largest recipients were Richard Childress Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing, Roush Fenway Racing and Roush Yates Engines and Andretti Autosport. Their loans ranged from $2.0 to $10.0 million while each retaining over 130 employees.

Other entities included: JR Motorsports, Richard Petty Motorsports, Arrow McLaren, Pocono Raceway and World Racing Group.

The goal of the PPP program was to allow companies to keep employees on the payroll. 

This was extremely important to motorsports since they were off the track for almost two months.  Once teams were given to green flag to resume racing in mid-May, they brought their workforces back to the shops to get cars prepped for the races.

Funding from sponsors probably varied during the shutdown.  Depending on the agreements, payments may have been tied to on-track performance, or  some may not have the ability to make team payments and sought relief during the shutdown.

Flexibility remains key during this continued period of uncertainty. Stakeholders utilized all options and worked together to keep motorsports on track and taking the green flag.