The National Hockey League (NHL) has agreed a new partnership with PointsBet Holdings that sees it secure an equity stake in the Australian sportsbook operator. PointsBet will issue the NHL with 43,106 shares – worth circa $556,000 – over the next three years.
Under the broader terms of the multi-year strategic alliance, PointsBet becomes the fourth official sports betting partner of the NHL, alongside MGM Resorts International, FanDuel and William Hill.
Keith Wachtel, NHL Chief Business Officer and Senior Executive Vice President, explained: “As the sports betting landscape evolves at a rapid pace, we continue to develop unique, strategic alliances within the sports gaming industry.
“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 agreement between the two parties spans both the US and Australia. As part of the collaboration, PointsBet receives rights to use NHL marks and logos, as well as a variety of NHL sponsorship and promotional opportunities for its brand across various linear, digital, and social media assets.
Notably, the deal also provides PointsBet the ability to integrate content into live NHL game broadcasts across NHL 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 NHL season, including the incorporation of PointsBet 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.”
