The NHL will take on more risk with its series of four international games in Stockholm, Sweden, and Prague, Czech Republic, next season, but the league will have more upside in terms of revenue than it did with last year’s games in London, said Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly.
The league generated more than $300 million in revenue last year when it opened the season in London with two sold-out games at the O2 Arena between the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings.
The 2008 international games will be played Oct. 4 and 5. The New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning will play in Prague at the Sazka Arena, which holds 18,000, while the Ottawa Senators and Pittsburgh Penguins will play in Stockholm at the Globe Arena, which holds approximately 14,000.
The deals behind the Stockholm and Prague games are structured differently, though both cities will host games on back-to-back nights.
Ceska Sportovni, a Czech sports marketing firm, is the organizer behind the Prague series. The firm will offset roughly $2 million in reported appearance fees associated with the Rangers-Lightning series with ticket sales.
Top dollar tickets will cost $350 each, and average ticket prices will be $180. Organizers expect the games to sell out in a week.
The success in London has spurred the NHL to
have games in Sweden and the Czech Republic.
“The people are very hungry for it,” said Vladimir Safarik, Ceska’s executive director. “There’s a great appetite for the games that we expect will make it sell out quickly.”
The league is partnering with EMA Telstar for the games in Stockholm. Terms of that deal were not available.
The series of international games isn’t designed to generate significant profits, Daly said, but to raise the profile of the league in key European markets.
“It’s about doing these games in a fiscally responsible way and building buzz,” Daly said, “just like we did with the Winter Classic.”
Both deals are awaiting approval from the NHLPA.
Canadian partners, U.S. rights: The NHL generated more than $500,000 in new sponsorship revenue from the All-Star Game by selling packages for Canadian partners to activate at the U.S. event.
The Home Depot and McDonald’s both bought rights to activate in the U.S. in deals sources valued in the low- and mid-six figures, respectively.
The deals represented the first time since the lockout that the league had offered Canadian partners the opportunity to activate in the U.S. As the league looks to fashion itself as a global property, it extended the opportunity to encourage Canadian companies to consider picking up U.S. rights, as well.
“We tried to get both of those partners to see the value here in the U.S.,” said David Lehanski, the NHL’s vice president of corporate sales and marketing.
The Home Depot, which is headquartered in Atlanta, struck a last-minute agreement and received dasherboard signage in the arena. The company also completed its “On the Bench” program, which allowed one Canadian youth hockey coach the chance to sit on the bench during the All-Star Game.
McDonald’s Canada made it possible for 12 Canadian youth hockey players to accompany the NHL all-stars onto the ice before the game in a program similar to the one run by FIFA before World Cup matches. The 12 players received round-trip airfare to Atlanta, three nights stay and tickets for the game. Promotional support for the program was conducted across Canada at McDonald’s locations and through TV, radio and online advertising.
Cisco Systems was all around the All-Star
Game through a one-time deal.
Cisco kid was a friend: The league did an exclusive one-time partnership with Cisco Systems around the NHL All-Star Game in a deal that the league’s marketing division hopes is a precursor to a longer relationship.
The deal gave Cisco Systems prominent exposure on NHL.com and title sponsorship of NHL.tv’s “Cisco All-Star 2008 All Access” show, a live one-hour special from Atlanta. The computer networking company also enjoyed a hospitality event at the Westin hotel in downtown Atlanta. The two-hour event offered more than 125 Cisco employees and invitees the chance to mingle with league officials, including Commissioner Gary Bettman and legendary player Gordie Howe.
’09 All-Star Game: The Montreal Canadiens start the celebration of their centennial with the All-Star Game next January and are exploring a host of ancillary events to distinguish it from previous years.
The team is entertaining the idea of kicking off all-star festivities a day earlier than in years past and hosting events from Thursday to Sunday. The team wants to bring the hockey community into Montreal sooner and generate more interest in the event early on, said Ray Lalonde, the Canadiens’ vice president of marketing and sales.
“It’s kind of like the All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium this summer,” Lalonde said. “It’s on that scale of impact and importance.”
Other ideas include hosting a legends game featuring former NHL greats, bringing a youth hockey tournament to town with teams from each NHL market, and a prospects game featuring undrafted players from around the world.
The year will culminate with a celebration on Dec. 4, 2009, the 100th anniversary of the team’s inception.
Around-the-clock coverage: The NHL undertook its first major collaboration between the NHL Network, NHL.com and its digital studios to offer nonstop coverage of NHL All-Star 2008. NHL.com aired eight hours of simulcast video from the NHL Network. That coverage was complemented online by 78 minutes of original programming, including the “Cisco NHL All-Star 2008 All Access” show, clips from Wyclef Jean’s concert and other features. “It’s the first time we’ve collaborated to undertake an effort like that,” said André Mika, NHL vice president of broadband and new media production. “It’s a taste of things to come from us in the future.”
