"It's not what you know, it's who you know and who knows you."
For sports business and management senior Sydney Kim, this popular advice is key to getting experience in the competitive world of sports business — and how she secured a position with the NASCAR team at Phoenix Raceway for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship this past weekend.
It's a sentiment that the female faces of the racing business in Phoenix know well. Phoenix Raceway President Latasha Causey, the first Black female track president in NASCAR history and an ASU alumnus, is passionate about helping students break into the sports business space.
"If you are able to build your network, you will be able to thrive in any job, but especially in sports," Causey said. "While (sports is) a large space, it's a small, connected space. People transition, whether you're in NASCAR, you might go work in the NBA or the NFL, and it's all about your connections."
Causey transitioned from a banking business to her role at the track almost two years ago and said it has been a fast ride. The one-mile oval track just beneath the Estrella Mountains is an entertainment hotspot in Arizona that welcomed guests like Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, who was an honorary pace-car driver, and guest performer Nelly for the 2024 Championship weekend. Causey said it's been "a whole lot of fun" bringing out new fans to experience the track.
Guest Entertainment Announcer Queen Noveen announced for the raceway for the second time at the championships. Noveen, whose voice can be recognized from the VMA's to video games to E! Network, broke barriers in sports announcing as part of the NFL's first all-female PA announcing team for the San Francisco 49ers.
"Being a live announcer, you don't see many females or Black females in that position," Noveen said. "For (Causey) to be able to bring me on and to show other people that, 'Yes, we can do it too, we're here and we're thriving,' we're gonna continue paving that road and show others that, 'yeah, you belong here as well.'"
Kim, who is part of Sports Business Scholars at ASU, said despite it being a male-dominated industry, now is a good time for women entering sports with women taking leadership positions in places like Phoenix Raceway.
"We're coming, fortunately, to a time where people aren't going to undermine you just because you're a woman," Kim said. "I think you just have to show that you have the skills and abilities to be able to perform and do the role successfully."
Causey aims not just to be a role model, but also to actively bring other talented individuals like Noveen into the NASCAR world to make it a more diverse and accepting space.
"I want other people who look like me and who are me to be here and to be present, whether that means that they're announcing, whether that means they're attending, whether that means they're behind the lens, whatever it is that they're doing," Causey said.
Noveen said it takes confidence to put yourself out there, and she uses social media as a tool to do that. Social media is where Causey found Noveen. She said seeing Noveen's social media, she knew her energy was what Phoenix Raceway needed.
Kim said professional organizations are also an important tool for young people like her who need to build connections in the sports world. At ASU, Sports Business Scholars and the Sports Business Association support students as they establish their early careers.
In addition, Women in Sports and Events is a national mentorship organization for women who want to take up roles in the sports world.
"While I may be the first Black woman to run a track at NASCAR, I want to make sure that I'm not the last," Causey said. "And I want to make sure I provide opportunities for all women to have a space, a space here, if there's a seat at a table, there's a seat at the table for anyone."
Edited by Senna James, Sophia Ramirez, Tiya Talwar and Natalia Jarrett.
Reach the reporter at spbracci@asu.edu and follow @SophiaBraccio on X.
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Sophia is a sophomore studying journalism and mass communication. This is her third semester with The State Press. She has also worked at Nomads with Notebooks and Blaze Radio.
