Will the NHL Ever be as Popular as the NFL in the United States?

If you are a sports fan, you know that the Super Bowl is more like a holiday than an event.

Fans prepare by setting up sports bets on the opposing teams, meeting with friends to watch the game and creating huge food spreads. The NFL action is still exciting even if you don’t have a favorite team in the game.

The moment is electric, and there is honestly nothing like it in the world of sports. The Super Bowl is considered a spectacle that everyone wants to enjoy and the #1 sporting event in the US.

Other sports, like hockey, would love to be at the same height of popularity as the NFL. But will the sport ever get there?

Promote Players More Effectively

One way the NFL ensures its popularity is to promote its players. You commonly see NFL stars in commercials and at signing events. The NHL could do the same and promote its players more effectively to gain an audience.

Star NHL players like Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, Jack Hughes, David Pastrnak, Nathan MacKinnon, Kirill Kaprizov, and Tage Thompson have a following in the NHL, they are just not as big as NFL players.

These individuals should be placed center stage by the league and promoted more to bring young people to the sport.

Hockey takes a lot of skill to play, and the element of talent is not highlighted enough. Anyone can pick up a bat, baseball, or football and practice to become a better player. However, hockey takes both practice and skill. It takes a lot of work to stay on the ice, and the professional players should be praised for this talent.

Hockey Is Not Wide-Spread Across the US Like Football

The NHL may never reach the popularity of the NFL, mainly due to the areas offering the sport. Hockey is not offered in every state due to several issues. Proper weather conditions are needed, as well as a skating rink. It is not common to find an ice skating rink in every US state or find one that will cater to young hockey players.

Players must be skilled in ice skating, and specialized gear is required. The sport is barely known in certain parts of the US, such as the South, due to a lack of staking rinks and the popularity of football in general.

Hockey is certainly a unique sport and a difficult one to play. Skating and stick/puck work basically creates two sports in one. Fans respect the sport's complexity and understand it takes dedication to become a professional player.

Canada Gets It

When it comes to hockey, Canada gets it. The country is perhaps the most popular place for hockey, and they know how to promote the sport. Unlike the United States, Canada highlights hockey in every way possible, and wants its young people to be involved.

The country offers teams and events for youngsters and this includes the World Juniors. The event is a holiday in Canada and showcases the best young talent in the provinces.

More promotion is needed for the sport of hockey in the United States if the NHL is ever going to reach a new height of popularity.

Fans should be educated on the rules of hockey as well as the regulations of the game.

Change Is Needed

Most fans know little about the sport as they start watching games or pick up language and tips through sports betting.

Operators tend to offer special promotions or events for NHL games during the regular season.

NHL betting features several options, and fans can learn more about how the game works by checking out the various bet types.  

Other than that, there are no options for promotion involving the NHL. Any small changes the league could make to promote the sport, including highlighting the best players, would go a long way to bringing in new fans.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Olivia Poglianich          

Content Strategist

Olivia Poglianich is a nomadic brand strategist and copywriter in the ski and snowboard space who has worked with brands such as Visa, Disney and Grey Goose. Her writing has taken her all over the world, from a Serbian music festival to a Malaysian art and culture event. Olivia is a graduate of Cornell University and is often writing or reading about travel, hospitality, the start-up ecosystem or career coaching. Her latest interests are at the intersection of web3 and communal living, both on and offline.