NHL Makes New Deal With Rogers Communications
The NHL and Rogers Communications announced a new 12-year national media deal Wednesday to air games on multiple platforms throughout the nation of Canada. The agreement, worth $11 billion, begins for the 2026-27 NHL season after the current 12-year deal expires. The agreement is worth more than double the current rights deal between Rogers and the NHL, which cost $5.2 billion over 12 years and is set to expire next season. The new deal runs through the 2037-38 season. Rogers’ new deal has set a far higher bar for the cost of NHL streaming rights – which could prove lucrative for the NHL when their United States rights come up for bid in 2028.
Rogers CEO Tony Staffieri said the company is proud to continue its partnership with the NHL. "Hockey is Canada's game and we're proud to be the home of hockey," Staffieri said in a statement. "Sports are core to our company, and these rights are the most valuable sports rights in Canada." NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said the league and Rogers have a shared commitment to best serving Canadian fans and the unmatched passion that they have for the game. This was highly shown during the 4 Nations event earlier this year. "For more than a decade, Rogers has done an incredible job of conveying what NHL hockey, our players, and our teams mean to hockey fans and their communities from coast to coast to coast," Bettman said.
The deal includes national rights across every platform, including TV, digital, and streaming, for all Canadian regular season games, as well as out-of-market rights for all regional games. It also includes national rights to all playoff games, the Stanley Cup Finals, and all special events. It is still unclear if the CBC, which has televised NHL games on Saturday nights since 1952, will be involved in the new deal. However, Rogers Sports & Media president Colette Watson is leaving the door open for future involvement with the CBC, and "will look to see if there's a continued partnership.” Chuck Thompson, head of the CBC's public affairs, echoed Watson's position. "Whatever opportunities may be presented to us with this new agreement will be considered over the next 18 months," he told CBC News. "In the meantime, we're excited to be able to carry this year's playoffs and then next season in our current deal with Sportsnet.
