Corporate partners from a wide array of industry categories are partnering with the National Hockey League to leverage the NHL brand and the growing marketplace for NHL hockey by investing and activating during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Despite a challenging economic climate, the NHL has aligned with seven new partner brands this season, and renewed agreements with an additional five partners, resulting in a 20-percent overall increase in corporate sponsorship revenue compared to last season.
During four consecutive years of record business performance, the NHL has continued to invest in growing the global hockey marketplace through fan activation platforms such as the NHL Winter Classic, as well as a deeper direct-to-consumer product portfolio. With a particular emphasis on these big events and digital offerings, the League is more completely leveraging its brand equity and delivering multi-platform marketing solutions that enable corporate marketers to reach the NHL’s highly desirable, highly engaged fan demographic.
“By creating a digital front door to the League, and with a sustained emphasis on big-scale activation platforms, we have scaled the business and redefined ourselves in the marketplace,” said NHL Chief Operating Officer John Collins. �â¬ï¿½There has been a significant shift in how corporate marketers view the NHL, and invest in our brand, marketing assets and fans.”
Accordingly, the following companies will partner with the NHL:
- Bell Mobility
- Bridgestone
- Energizer
- Enterprise
- Hershey’s
- Honda
- Labatt Breweries
- Bud Light
- Pepsi, Co.
- Scotiabank
- Starwood Hotels
- Visa
