The National Hockey League has taken an equity stake in PointsBet as part of a multi-year strategic partnership which sees the operator named as an official sports betting partner.
According to a filing with the Australian Securities Exchange, PointsBet will issue the NHL with 43,106 shares which represents a value of approximately US$500,000.
“As the sports betting landscape evolves at a rapid pace, we continue to develop unique, strategic alliances within the sports gaming industry,” said Keith Wachtel, NHL chief business officer and senior executive vice president.
“Our partnership with PointsBet brings to life our collaboration with our valued media partners and we look forward to enhancing our fan engagement opportunities in concert with both PointsBet and NBC. We are proud to welcome PointsBet to the NHL family.”
The collaboration spans across the United States and Australia, and gives PointsBet the rights to use NHL marks and logos, as well as providing a variety of sponsorship and promotional opportunities for its brand across various linear, digital, and social media assets.
Furthermore, the deal also offers PointsBet the ability to integrate content into live NHL game broadcasts across its media partners, including NBC Sports, NBC Sports Regional Networks, Altitude TV, and other potential future linear alignments.
PointsBet, NBC Sports and the NHL have already begun installing such integrations for the 2020-21 season, including the incorporation of odds, data, and insight to complement the pregame, in-game, and postgame broadcasts.
“PointsBet is thrilled to become an official sports betting partner of the National Hockey League,” commented Johnny Aitken, CEO of PointsBet USA.
“The NHL’s on-ice product provides fans with captivating, nonstop action – it is a privilege to join forces with the NHL and its forward-thinking team, complementing that action with PointsBet’s sports betting product.
“We are excited to further elevate fan engagement via offering the most markets in the world for each NHL game, including our exclusive PointsBetting product, and enhance TV and digital integrations with mutual partners like NBC Sports.”
