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Still, executives said current economic conditions and lofty ownership expectations, combined with a seven- or eight-figure asking price and competitiveness across leagues for jersey advertising, has led to a more challenging sales environment. Wes Engram, president of Integrity 9 Sports & Entertainment, previously cited 138 available advertising patches still for sale across top-tier North American professional sports. 

Some of those interviewed, including Cull, said that team and agency executives originally viewed cryptocurrency and NFTs as specific sectors for jersey patch deals, but due to economic uncertainty, inflation and insolvent companies, agreements in those industries have not come to fruition. 

Dan Griffis, president of global partnerships at Oak View Group — which worked with multiple NHL teams on jersey patch deals, including the Arizona Coyotes — said there are some “tentative pocketbooks” across corporate America.

“You have to find the brands that still want to put their foot on the pedal and gain share in a downturn,” Griffis said. “It’s more difficult to be a second-mover” for a sponsorship asset like the jersey patch, he said, but having years’ worth of data from the NBA’s program is an advantage for the NHL.

The economics and logistics of NHL jersey ads 

Senior NHL executives and agency experts touted the NHL’s jersey patch value proposition, like reaching a niche but highly engaged audience, achieving heightened brand visibility and driving media impressions.

“NHL fans overindex on wealth more than other major sports, but less than golf and lacrosse,” said Ron Li, senior vice president of client strategy at Navigate. “When you think about what brands are going to be interested in that type of audience, some tend to be a little bit more recession-proof, partially because of their consumers.” 

Teams have to decide if they want to work with one or two companies, marking one of the issues with which sales executives must wrestle as they try to broker a deal. The Blue Jackets’ Scholvin noted that the team’s preference was one sponsor for both the home and away jerseys so the club could maximize the revenue opportunity associated with the sponsorship asset. 

“It delivers more compounded value for that one brand to have both jerseys,” he said. 

Carin Anderson, senior vice president of corporate partnerships and retail management for the Minnesota Wild, said the team believed it could better execute the deal points for one sponsor across all game day jerseys versus two different brands. Anderson confirmed the Wild’s five-year term length with TRIA Orthopedics, a deal reportedly worth $5.65 million a year. 

The Wild’s deal features other elements beyond the jersey patch, including a three-part documentary series featuring the state’s youth and high school hockey model. HealthPartners Inc. will also work with the Wild’s foundation to promote specific themed nights such as Pride Night. 

Oak View Group’s Griffis said splitting up the jersey patch with two different companies could result in a tougher sales pitch because both brands would share the same sponsorship asset and not be exclusively first on a team’s jersey. 

He also highlighted how if two brands’ industries aren’t congruent, it may narrow a team’s search to find the right sponsors. For example, if a team’s home sweater features a sports betting company or a casino operator, a conservative brand may prefer not to share the jersey patch distinction. There also may be a “guilty by association” factor, Griffis added. 

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