NHL Sponsorship Revenues Surge to Record Highs
National Hockey League (NHL) teams have reported a significant increase in sponsorship revenue, surpassing a record-breaking US$1.4 billion for the 2023/24 season. This marks a ten per cent rise from the previous season, as revealed in SponsorUnited’s latest NHL Marketing Partnerships report.
Key highlights from the report include the finance sector leading all categories with a revenue of US$240 million. Additionally, the average cost of a primary jersey patch sponsorship deal in the NHL stood at US$3.87 million, while helmet signage agreements averaged at US$2.1 million. The league also dominates virtual sponsorship signage, accounting for 85 per cent of all virtual ads across major North American sports leagues.
Among NHL teams, the Vegas Golden Knights boasted the highest number of sponsorship deals with 177, followed by the Nashville Predators with 152 and the Washington Capitals with 142. Meanwhile, Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk emerged as the player with the most endorsement deals, totaling seven, with four other players holding six each.
Over the past year, NHL franchises secured 26 new primary jersey and helmet sponsorships, showcasing the league’s attractiveness to brands. The NHL remains at the forefront of virtual advertising technology, with over a thousand brands utilizing digital assets during the season. Notably, there was an 11 per cent increase in brands using digitally enhanced dasherboards.
US companies dominated team sponsorships with a 70 per cent share, while Canadian brands accounted for 19 per cent and global entities made up the remaining 11 per cent of deals.
Looking ahead, ten NHL franchises are yet to secure a primary jersey patch sponsor for the upcoming 2024/25 season, presenting a priority for their commercial departments in the off-season. Furthermore, fans can anticipate a docuseries featuring top teams and players like Connor McDavid and Matthew Tkachuk, exclusively produced by Box To Box Films and available on Amazon Prime Video.
In an exciting development, the NHL is collaborating with ESPN to launch a new game, ‘ESPN Chaos Run,’ within the ‘NHL Blast’ digital environment on Roblox, set to debut on 8th June.
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