The Stanley Cup Final begins Saturday with questions about how many people will watch Florida and Edmonton, relative to his vanquished enemies in New York and Dallas. But the NHL is already off the ice this year, with sponsorship revenue increasing 10% to a record $1.4 billion, according to a new report from SponsorUnited.
The data measures team sponsorships and does not include league-level deals. The NHL is behind the NBA and MLB in its reach, but hockey nearly matches those sports in terms of sponsorship revenue, with both reaching $1.5 billion in their most recent seasons—the leagues are closer to U.S. $2 billion when considering league deals. The NFL continues to be the leader among U.S. sports leagues with $2.35 billion for its 32 teams, according to SponsorUnited. MLS raised $587 million in its 2023 season.
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The NHL has the lowest sponsor turnover rate among the leagues, according to SponsorUnited CEO Bob Lynch. It also highlights new NHL assets like digitally enhanced billboards (DED) and home/away jersey emblems, which have helped sponsor revenue more than double since the 2020-21 season.
“The NHL continues to do things to try to innovate and differentiate itself from its competitors,” Lynch said in a video interview.
NHL owners approved jersey advertising to begin with the 2022-23 season, two years after helmet decals were added. The initial response was lukewarm in a crowded market where the NBA and MLB also had jersey patches up for bid, but teams added 26 new helmet and jersey sponsorships last season, including six brands investing in the NHL for the first time. Available inventory for these valuable assets has fallen by 50% this season, leaving just 10 teams left to sign deals for their home jerseys. SponsorUnited pegs the average jersey deal at $3.9 million per year and $2.1 million for helmets.
The NHL debuted digital billboards that display rotating advertising for the 2022-23 season. Councils faced some initial criticism due to glitches in technology, but this has subsided. The NHL dominated this market with 85% of spending on virtual assets among the top five US sports leagues going to the NHL.
More than 1,000 brands have employed digital assets in collaboration with the league and individual teams, and 50% of brands investing in virtual assets have exclusively purchased DEDs. The Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Pittsburgh Penguins have been the top teams selling DEDs, while Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Geico and Toyota are the leading purchasing brands, according to SponsorUnited, which works for 31 NHL teams and the league. in itself.
NHL and NBA teams have an advantage on the sponsorship side with the number of events these buildings host outside of sports. “There are opportunities to do a lot more with customers who also come for shows and other events,” Lynch said. “These things lead you to have broader discussions about sponsorship deals.”
Financial services continues to be the dominant sponsorship category, with US$240 million in team deals, more than double the alcohol and automotive sectors, which rank second and third. The same dynamic exist in the NBA with financial brands ($247 million) twice as large as technology brands ($122 million) in spending. The NHL’s telecommunications business increased 31% to $73 million, while insurance saw a 27% gain to $59 million. Some categories saw declines in NHL sponsor spending, including government, education, non-alcoholic beverages, retail and media.
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