First it was helmets, now it's jerseys.
Today, Eben Novy-Williams and Scott Soshnick of Sportico confirmed that the NHL has approved the use of advertisements on jerseys through an unanimous vote by the NHL board of governors. This policy will go into effect when the 2022-23 NHL season begins.
The ads must fit within a rectangle that is 3 inches by 3.5 inches. Last season, the NHL approved helmet ads, which were a success in creating revenue.
“We completed a CBA extension, we negotiated a new US media rights agreement, and we signed 13 new corporate partners with the league,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in March of this year. “We created new assets – the helmet decals, the virtual slot ads, the division sponsors — to help our clubs retain 100 million dollars in revenues.”
Major leagues in the United States that currently sell ad space on jerseys include the NBA, WNBA, and MLS. In other countries, advertising on jerseys is more prevalent, and that trend seems to be slowly making its way to American leagues.
