Hello's & Goodbye's: NHL Draft & Schedule Release + EPL Partner Ban
Creative NHL schedule releases. EPL gambling ban. 2022 NHL Draft.
Our thoughts are with the country and people of Ukraine, hoping a peaceful end is near.
On Today’s Agenda:
NBA Partners with the Creators of Pokemon Go, Niantic to Enter the Metaverse
2022 NHL Draft Takes Stage
NHL teams Copy NFL Counterparts in Creative Schedule Releases
NHL Draft Surprises With Unpredictable Top Four Picks
2022 NHL Draft Takes Stage
By Caleb Gilligan
With the 2022 NHL Draft officially wrapping up on Friday, over 200 prospects now have new hockey homes. For the first time since 1985, the host team selected first overall in the draft. This year, it was the Montreal Canadians who had the opportunity to select the eligible player of their choosing. Although Shane Wright was projected to be the first overall since the day he was given exceptional status in the OHL, it was Juraj Slafkovský who surprised the crowd at the Bell Centre.
Slafkovský surpassed Wright in the final few days leading up to the Draft after numerous interviews with the Montreal Canadians. Habs GM Kent Hughes admitted to deciding the fate of their newest star on Wednesday morning, less than two days before they had to submit the pick. This was the first contested first overall pick since Nico Hischier narrowly beat out Nolan Patrick in 2017.
Although the Canadians left a potential first-line center on the table, they picked up a much-needed left wing to fit on their line of Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki. The need for immediate help in the center position was solved by trading for Kirby Dach, the Blackhawks' 3rd overall pick in 2019 in a package that involved defenceman Alexander Romanov going to the New York Islanders.
The New Jersey Devils also passed on Wright in favour of defenceman Šimon Nemec. With Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier headlining the Devils’ top 2 centre positions, there was little opportunity for Wright to make an immediate impact. The Devils may have also solved some of their defensive problems by drafting Nemec at 2nd overall.
The Coyotes are another team to pass on Wright, this time in favour of another centerman, Logan Cooley. Cooley, who was born in Pittsburgh, starred with the US National Development Program and should be playing in the 5,000-seat ASU Arena in Tempe once the 2022-23 NHL season begins in October.
Finally, the Seattle Kraken ended Wright’s draft drought by selecting him 4th overall. Wright will undoubtedly become the star of the NHL’s newest franchise when he hits the ice in the Fall. Although the brand deals may be harder to come by in Seattle compared to Montreal, Wright will have plenty of opportunities to shine in Seattle. Despite not fulfilling his prediction of being the first overall pick, there’s no reason Shane Wright should be going home disappointed.
With the 2022 NHL Draft officially being over, hockey fans can now turn their heads toward the Free Agency that opens on July 13.
EPL Clubs Set to Vote on Voluntary Gambling Sponsor Ban
Gambling Sponsor Ban Could Cost Clubs £40M per Season
By AJ Hewish
Now, if you’re a fan of the English Premier League, you’re likely aware of or involved in the betting for each match that arises over the 38-game game week each season. Fans bet on every possible thing to happen in a Premier League game, from a Ronaldo hattrick, what position Arsenal will finish, and even how fast someone will score the first goal. As of the 2021/22 season, of the 20 teams, 50% of them have shirt sponsors involved in gambling. West Ham, Southampton, Crystal Palace, Newcastle, and so many more have multimillion-dollar deals with international gambling organizations to sponsor their kit… well maybe not anymore.
In recent news, it was announced that the British Government is set to introduce legislation that prohibits gambling with an updated White Paper on gambling to update its 15-year-old legislation to update gambling laws to the modern, digital era. It’s all a big mess, especially with the UK’s Gambling Minister Chris Philip resigning yesterday, as well as the resignation of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The legislative ban is set to reduce the max wager on online casinos, ban games that allow fans to lose incredible amounts of money, as well as ban free bets, in an attempt to reduce the gambling issues occurring nationwide.
Now, this seems very reasonable, but one of the top leagues in the world is extremely hesitant and worried about the potential financial repercussions set to occur if the ban legislation is voted in favour on July 21st, so the Premier League has taken matters into their own hands. The combined shirt sponsor deals are valued at hundreds of millions of Great British Pounds, with the SkyBet Championship, the second-tier in English soccer, having announced the ban will cost the clubs £40 million per season!
The Premier League has requested clubs to vote on whether or not to introduce a voluntary ban on gambling sponsorships on shirts, pending the official ruling from Her Majesty’s Government. Doing so would attempt to limit gambling exposure to fans while saving millions for the football development hierarchy in the UK. However, it may not be enough, as fans see more than just the shirts, but see ads, billboards, social media posts, pitch-side sponsors, everything!
Regardless of the political side of things, this could be a huge loss for English Football, with millions of pounds at stake. At WWM, we look at a bigger picture: Can the Premier League survive an insurmountable loss all at once? Who can take its place? Furthermore, does Cryptocurrency even count?
It would be cool to see no sponsors on the shirts and just the logo of the club, bringing the league back decades, but it will be a huge loss for the Premier League.
Making A Splash in the Off-Season
NHL teams Copy NFL Counterparts in Creative Schedule Releases
By Hiral Patel
Teams are starting to get more and more creative on social media with their team’s announcements, a sight that sports fans from all over are loving. Events and moments that were often announced in a bland way have now taken on a new life. This past week, the NHL officially released its schedule – and some teams took this opportunity to get really creative for their fans during the offseason. Let’s have a look at two of the best to come out of the NHL:
The Seattle Kraken released their schedule on Twitter, including a fun video activation with their partner Alaska Airlines. The video shows different scenes that are themed around their key opponents/dates, and ultimately revealing the date of the game. Because of their travel partnership with Alaska Airlines, the reveal also included a few key away games. This was a seamless integration of their partnership that took the announcement and combined it with the travel partner’s objectives of driving more traffic on their airplanes.
On the east coast, the New Jersey Devils released their schedule with a content piece featuring their star defenseman, Dougie Hamilton. Themed around a day trip to Six Flags (which is a perfect theme for the summer and the offseason), the video had a retro theme and included several dad jokes to refer to divisional opponents, later revealing the opponent(s) and the games they play against the Devils.
What stands out about both of these videos is the concept of elevation – taking a moment to the next level using content. The schedule release is always exciting for fans as they start to plan which games they might want to attend and how their team will fare in the upcoming season. These announcements drive more excitement to an otherwise lackluster event.
Additionally, seeing partner activations take on more creativity, like Seattle and Alaska Airlines is always exciting for sports fans and sports marketers everywhere. Here’s to hoping that more teams take a dive into the creative side and start one-upping each other with their schedule announcements like we see in the NFL.