NHL set to add advertisements to jerseys next year
After helmets featured an extra decal in 2021, the NHL will go bigger and add advertisements to jerseys in 2022, according to ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski.
“The NHL had surveyed its teams and found the majority of them in favor of jersey ads,” Wyshynski reported. “The ads will be featured in a 3-inch-by-3.5-inch rectangle, which is larger than the NBA’s 2.5-by-2.5-inch space for uniform ads.”
A true inevitability after the success of helmet advertisements this past season, the move to permit ads on jerseys follows the NBA’s lead, which has featured advertising patches on jerseys since 2017. (The Celtics, in case you’re wondering, started with General Electric ads before moving to Vistaprint last year.)
It’s also something not entirely foreign to the NHL, as teams have allowed advertisements on practice jerseys for over a decade. The Bruins’ practice jerseys are currently sponsored by O.R.G. Packaging, and were sponsored by Cross Insurance prior to the league’s switch from Reebok to Adidas.
It will be interesting to see just where the Bruins go with their advertisement.
The Bruins went with TD Bank for their helmet decal last year, with a natural connection as TD Bank holds the naming rights of the B’s home arena. That was the path for most teams, it turned out, as most helmet decals were simply named after the arena’s main sponsor, and with the NHL saving about $100 million in revenue via helmet decals.
But there’s also some obvious connections to the Bruins and Boston, from Dunkin’ to O.R.G. Packaging to some of the organization’s other top sponsors and connections. (The P-Bruins, for what it’s worth, already skate with jersey advertisements, and have a Dunkin’ decal beneath the right shoulder of their jerseys.)
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Ty Anderson is a writer and columnist for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Yell at him on Twitter: @_TyAnderson.
