The NHL has signed a three-year U.S. deal with New Amsterdam Vodka, making it the official vodka of the league.
It is the first league-level partnership for the vodka brand, which was launched in 2011 by E. & J. Gallo Winery. It is the second-highest-selling vodka in the U.S., according to spirits industry analyst Impact Databank, finishing behind only Smirnoff. It has previously done several team-level deals in baseball and football, including with the Minnesota Vikings.
The NHL had a partnership with Diageo that covered the broader distilled spirits category. That deal expired, allowing the league to carve up the category, said David Lehanski, NHL senior vice president of business development and global partnerships. Last month, the NHL signed a partnership with Jägermeister, making it the official shot of the league in the U.S.
New Amsterdam Vodka will activate around the deal in several ways during the coming season, including through its displays in retail stores, on-site hospitality, promotion at NHL tentpole events, and promotion across NHL digital and social channels, as well as on NBC Sports’ NHL broadcasts. It will receive dasherboard signage at all Stanley Cup Playoff and Final games played in the U.S., and will brand a custom content series that will run on NHL digital channels during the Stanley Cup Playoffs that will center on how much energy is “poured” into the playoffs.
Michael Sachs, director of marketing for New Amsterdam Spirits, said it will also sign approximately 10 team-level deals around the NHL, declining to comment on specific teams as the deals have not yet been finalized. He characterized the overarching NHL deal as a multimillion-dollar one, declining to comment further on its financials.
E. & J. Gallo Winery is in discussions with several sports marketing agencies regarding managing its NHL on-site activations. Sachs declined to comment since the discussions are ongoing.
The start of the NHL season also marks a significant moment for the league’s partnership business, as it navigates renewals in several large categories, looks to secure deals in open ones, and plots the league’s path into gambling.
The league’s beer deal with MillerCoors, which covers both Canada and the U.S. and was the NHL’s biggest sponsorship deal at $400 million when it was signed in 2011, expires at the end of this season. In addition, the league’s North American automotive deal with Honda, its credit card and payment deals with Discover and Visa in the U.S. and Canada, respectively, and its U.S. partnership with Dunkin’ are all also up for renewal.
The NHL is also looking to strike deals in several categories in which it has had vacancies in previous years, such as the wireless category — the NHL is the only major North American pro league without a deal in this category — and the financial services category, in which it has a Canada-only deal with Scotiabank. The league is also looking deeper into partnerships in the technology space, especially with companies that can work their offerings into the league, akin to its global partnership with Apple for behind-the-bench tablets.
“One of our big focuses continues to be technology and finding ways to enhance the game on the ice while providing new opportunities for tech companies to participate with us, as well as around arena infrastructure and making that in-arena experience better,” said NHL Chief Revenue Officer Keith Wachtel.
Wachtel said that one of the league’s priorities in all of its partnership discussions revolves around the league’s growing international calendar of events, seeking out partners that are also looking to activate globally alongside the league “not just in the traditional hockey markets,” he said.
That trickles into the gambling category, which Wachtel said the league is “very active in pursuing,” declining to comment further as discussions are ongoing with potential partners.
In addition, the league is working toward player and puck tracking, unlocking a data set that may also be used in a gambling partnership.
“We’re open to taking a very progressive approach to this category,” Wachtel said.
