The NHL’s jersey advertising program took off. From 2022-23, the Washington Capitals will wear the Caesars Sportsbook logo on their home and third jerseys, marking a significant change in the franchise’s relationship with the sportsbook.
“Being woven into the jersey of the Washington Capitals is an exciting chapter in our collective history,” said Caesars co-president Chris Holdren.. “We love blazing trails and are always looking for innovative opportunities that drive engagement and storytelling for fans. We are proud to extend our historic partnership with such a famous franchise.
Jim Van Stone, COO of Parent company of Capitalscalled the deal “a wonderful development and exciting fan engagement opportunity for both organizations in the nation’s capital.”
Earlier this year, Caesars launched the first sportsbook in a stadium in the United States, at Capital One Arena.
In August, it was revealed that the NHL Board of Governors had voted unanimously in favor of jersey ads for the 2022-23 season. The move gave franchises the green light to approach potential business partners, with each team allowed to sell a 3-inch by 3.5-inch sponsorship patch on players’ uniforms.
Washington signed the NHL’s first jersey sponsorship deal on Friday, signing a multi-year deal with Caesars Entertainment. The partnership, it seems worth $5 million per seasonwill see the bookmaker’s logo appear on the Capitals’ home and third jerseys from 2022-23.
However, the partnership will only cover games played at Capital One Arena due to inconsistencies in gambling legislation in the United States and Canada.
The Capitals will announce an away jersey sponsor at a later date.
Advertisements on the NHL’s route to Jersey
Only six years have passed since NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman proclaimed that he would “have to be dragged kicking and screaming” to introduce jersey sponsorship. “I’m not in a hurry to advertise our sweaters, I like the history, the tradition and the way they look,” he said in 2015.
Clearly, a lot has changed since then – both within and outside of the NHL.
Although the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) decision to introduce vest sponsorship in 2017-18 increased pressure on Bettman to act, it was the COVID-19 pandemic that forced the NHL to change one’s mind. Resistance to uniform sponsorship within the league collapsed after helmet ads were introduced last seasonmainly because this change reminded owners of the lucrative opportunities they had previously missed.
Additionally, the end of the ban on advertising on NHL jerseys aligns high-level hockey with other major sports in the region.
One of Major League Soccer’s (MLS) 27 franchises, Atlanta United, reportedly earns between $3 million and $4 million per season through its sponsorship deal with American Family Insurance. Not only is the Capitals’ deal with Caesars more lucrative, but the ad patch is also smaller and won’t be placed on every team uniform.
In other words, the NHL stands to receive a significant windfall by allowing jersey sponsorship. In an era of pandemic austerity, policymakers were never going to say “no.”
Jersey sponsorship remains unpopular among fans
Although jersey ads have proven popular among the NHL’s board of directors, the same cannot be said for the league’s national fans. There has been backlash against the introduction of helmet adverts and resistance to the expansion of uniform sponsorship remains.
The Washington-Cesars deal is a litmus test for the NHL. If signing a jersey sponsorship deal with a sportsbook doesn’t spark a fan revolt in Washington, other franchises will be empowered to act just as aggressively. Time will tell us.
Ted Leonsis, the game and the Washington Capitals
Capitals owner Ted Leonsis has long talked about the “gamification” of hockey. He believes the North American sports industry is poised to make significant gains following the liberalization of gambling laws in the United States.
“I wish we didn’t call it gambling” Leonsis said last year. “For me, acting is rolling the dice. I have no control over the outcome. Sports betting relies on data. The more research you do, the more due diligence you do, the more you study, the smarter your bet will be.
The Leonsis equation is simple: creating more opportunities to bet on hockey will increase the game’s viewership (and potential profitability).
“Sports and technology come together in this new gaming process,” said the Capitals owner. “I think connectivity and data and everything else enabled by the real-world community and then watching these talented athletes play is going to continue to grow the sports industry.”
Despite this, Washington’s latest partnership is not just on jersey sponsorship. Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE) – the company through which Leonsis’ businesses are operated – enabled Caesars to launch a sportsbook at Capital One Arena in May. The two-story, 18,000-square-foot venue is the first betting center to open in a U.S. sports complex.
Make no mistake, Leonsis and his Capitals are wholeheartedly committed to gamification. The direction this process takes in the NHL could be problematic.
Cause for concern: Sports gambling in English football
Three years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a 1992 federal law that banned sports gambling in most states. A similar story can be told in Canada, where single game betting was legalized in August 2021.
The floodgates are open: North American professional sports teams and competitions have the green light to enter into partnerships with bookmakers. But should they?
In the UK, the relationship between sport and gambling has reached worrying heights.
Bolton Wanderers, a third division club in English football, recently announced that they would not sign any new sponsorship deals with gambling companies. Instead, the team said it would “look to support charities and organizations that seek to provide help to those suffering from betting addiction.”
On the subject, President Sharon Brittan said: “The latest research shows that there are between 340,000 and 1.4 million adults addicted to gambling in the UK and more than 60,000 young people aged 11 to 16 are addicted.
“As an industry we need to do more and, through our work with Bolton Wanderers in the community, Bolton Wanderers Football Club will support awareness programs for those with gambling problems.”
However, the English Football League (EFL) – of which Bolton is a member – is sponsored by Sky Bet. The situation is also endemic in the Premier League, where nine of its 20 clubs are sponsored by gambling companies. According to a study by the University of Glasgow, there were 716 ‘exposures’ to the game during a recent match between Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers – an average of six per minute.
Betting adverts are now a fixture in British sport. By authorizing the Caesars-Capitals jersey sponsorship deal, the NHL risks going down the same path.
