The National Hockey League made the decision to enable teams to place advertisements on player helmets last season as a way of generating more revenue to make up for the games and fan attendance lost thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.
For the Detroit Red Wings, last year’s helmet sponsor was United Wholesale Mortgage, and for the upcoming 2021-22 NHL Season, there will be a new sponsorship. Take a look below as forward Tyler Bertuzzi hits the checkout line:
We are proud to announce @meijer as our new Helmet Entitlement Partner. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/m55uc8SAQo
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) September 15, 2021
“We’re thankful to our friends at Meijer for their recently expanded partnership, and for a company with such deep-rooted Michigan ties to be featured on the classic Red Wings helmets,” said Peter Kent, Senior Vice President of Corporate Partnerships. “We look forward to furthering our community-based partnership with Meijer for many years to come.”
Fans should get used to this, because helmet advertisements were just the first step. Beginning next season, all 32 teams will have advertisements placed on their uniforms. While this will and already has certainly upset plenty of hockey fans, it’s just the latest example of the new reality we’re in.
– – Quotes via Ilitch News Hub Link – –