Pontus Holmberg of the Toronto Maple Leafs seen in action at Nationwide Arena on October 22, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (Jason Mowry / Getty Images)

Dear NHL, We Can’t See the Ice Through the Ads

submited by

Style Pass

2024-11-01 23:00:02

Pontus Holmberg of the Toronto Maple Leafs seen in action at Nationwide Arena on October 22, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (Jason Mowry / Getty Images)

“Trumpism,” our issue focusing on the global right, is out now. Subscribe to our print edition at a discounted rate today.

Fans of professional hockey in North America have noticed a serious spike in the number of advertisements during games and broadcasts. The league has long welcomed ads, but it recently adopted, as the industry might put it, “new revenue opportunities.” This includes branding player jerseys and helmets, as well as launching “digitally enhanced” and “AI-powered” dasherboards so that viewers at home see variable, geographically targeted ads instead of a standard message or logo. The recent blitz follows the league’s decision to add more on-ice ads a few years ago.

The digital boards, new on-ice ads, and branded patches on uniforms are ugly and distracting. Combined with regular commercial breaks during and between periods and sponsored broadcasts — which include plugs for Amazon or Uber or any number of the now ubiquitous sports gambling outfits that prey on fans of the sport — the visual and mental burden of the ad bombardment is tremendous. It’s an ultrabranded aesthetic dystopia that undermines what ought to be the joy — and maddening sorrow — of watching a hockey game.