It was bad enough when I had to look at a red Scotiabank logo whenever the Toronto Maple Leafs played on the road last year. Now I’m going to have to look at ads on what were supposed to be sacred: the NHL sweater.
I am disgusted. Just disgusted. If the Toronto Maple Leafs ever put an ad on their sweater I am going to lose my mind.
I knew that it wouldn’t stop at the helmet ads. I just knew it. As if we fans weren’t bombarded enough by advertisements during sporting events, we now have to look at an ad on a hockey jersey. This is something we covered awhile ago, but now that we’re seeing it in action, the bear has been poked.
So let me tell you why this is an awful thing and why fans should be disgusted with the NHL.
Ads On NHL Uniforms and the Toronto Maple Leafs
Three teams have announced jersey sponsors so far for next season: The Columbus Blue Jackets, the Washington Capitals and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
I’m not going to say what the sponsors are, because that’s exactly what they want me to do.
There isn’t a sport on the planet earth that has a more sacred uniform than hockey.
Think about it: all the great players that have worn their team colors with pride, just the team colors and a crest over their chests.
This isn’t Europe. This isn’t the ECHL. This isn’t the AHL. This is the National Hockey League. Everything from the power play to the division names have been sponsored by this league, and now we’re putting in on the sweaters??? No. This is where we need to draw the line. The boards are covered in sponsors. Ads run on the jumbotron and other screens throughout the games. There’s hundreds of sponsored in-game events. The Leafs power play, penalty kill, pre game show AND post game show are all sponsored. There are ads all along the actual ice surface. WHERE DOES IT END?!
The NHL lost money because of the pandemic? We all did.
That hasn’t stopped us from following and vigorously cheering on our teams every step of the way through this mess. Now the NHL needs uniform sponsors because they just aren’t making enough money.
“Ben, calm down,” you’re surely saying to yourself. “What’s the big deal? It’s just an extra way to make money.”
First of all, that’s exactly the point. Second of all, the premise of what they’re doing here has me even more upset that the actual ad. To be clear I am outraged about seeing an ad on NHL sweaters.
That’s all this is to the teams that are going to be doing this: some extra cash.
It doesn’t matter that tickets, food, parking, beer and other beverages are already gouging the fans. They need more. This isn’t going to stop at an ad on the chest. Next it’s going to be the sleeve. Then the back. Then the pants. Then the socks. Hell, why not put a brand name on Mitch Marner’s nameplate?
The helmet ads were supposed to be a one time thing during the pandemic. That didn’t happen. Now it’s this, and it’s going to be something else soon. There’s no coming back from this because the people who make these decisions aren’t going to say to themselves “gee let’s stop doing this thing that makes us a few extra bucks.”
I pray that this doesn’t catch on and the teams will realize that the fans don’t want this. It’s just unnecessary.
I don’t think anyone wants to buy a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey with a tik tok logo above one of the most iconic logos in history.