IMG Arena has secured the rights to provide live NHL streaming to U.S. sportsbook partners. As a result, legal sportsbooks will be able to offer customers live video of select out-of-market hockey games.
The agreement would help drive engagement for NHL fans, according to IMG. The company has streamed NHL games to European partners for several years.
“The NHL is a highly-valued asset in our portfolio,” said Freddie Longe, managing director of IMG Arena. “We are proud to expand this successful partnership to offer one of the largest U.S. sports to our growing customer base of sportsbooks.”
According to Legal Sports Report, the contract also marks the latest expansion in the U.S. for IMG, which also provides official data for tennis. In addition, the London-based company has data deals with the UFC and PGA Tour, although it has yet to announce any operator partners for those feeds.
Live streaming has been successful in driving betting turnover in Europe. In 2019, more than 175 million hours of IMG content was watched by 56 million unique viewers around the globe.
The NHL said the deal was part of its progressive approach to sports betting. The league already boasts official betting partnerships with MGM Resorts, FanDuel Sportsbook and William Hill.
“We are excited about the expansion of our international relationship with IMG Arena into the U.S.,” said Steve McArdle, NHL executive vice president of digital media and strategic planning. “The NHL has taken a progressive approach to sports betting, and this live game streaming opportunity with IMG Arena provides another innovative touch point for fan engagement.”
Hockey is currently a relatively small betting sport, accounting for a low single-digit share of New Jersey revenues in January.
