Gary Bettman will have warned everyone...
For some time now, the NHL has decided to impose advertisements on the helmets of NHL teams, in order to have a more considerable income. The league lost a lot of money last year, due to COVID-19 restrictions, so they fell back on this idea. Initially, it was only a short-term solution, but the ads will remain on the helmets in the future, apparently.
However, for the past few years, there have been several rumors that the NHL would introduce ads on jerseys, like the hockey teams in Europe. However, I more or less believed it, considering the authenticity of the league that is the NHL to not put any ads on their jerseys.
However, yesterday I had to change my mind, as a quote from Gary Bettman, dating back to the beginning of the year 2021, resurfaced. Bettman had mentioned that putting ads on NHL teams' jerseys was a strong possibility. According to Bettman, this would create a huge revenue stream that would pull the NHL out of a financial hole that it is currently in.
Many fans were threatening to stop watching games or even buying jerseys if this happened. An outcome that would strongly surprise one of the executive directors of the NHL, whose identity was not revealed:
"People who threaten to stop watching sports or buying a jersey because of the ads are either liars or they don't really watch the games."
Which way do you lean? Clearly, this is a never-ending debate that generates a lot of reactions. Will you stop listening to hockey because of ads on jerseys? For me, no. However, I am definitely not in favour of this change...
