Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. (OLG) has signed yet another deal with a major sports body, becoming the National Hockey League’s (NHL) official sports betting partner in Canada.
OLG Becomes NHL’s First Betting Partner in Canada
The partnership was announced this Wednesday and will be the NHL’s first partnership with a sports betting operator in the country. The multi-year agreement covers both OLG’s digital offerings under the PROLINE+ platform, as well as its retail shop solution PROLINE across the province.
The deal will provide OLG with rights over the league’s official branding, allowing it to launch promotions and bonuses under the NHL logo. PROLINE+ will be the NHL’s presenting sponsor during the pre-game of the Heritage Classic outdoor tournament.
Dave Pridmore, the chief digital and strategy officer of OLG, spoke about the deal and its potential. He said that the multi-year aspect provides the two parties with ample time to bring bettors and sports fans closer together.
Additionally, Pridmore noted that the partnership with a renowned league such as the NHL is a great way for his company to boost its hockey and sports offerings. A month ago, the company inked similar deal with the National Football League, greatly expanding its sports betting offerings.
OLG Will Offer a Great Variety of Sports Betting Options to Attract Punters
Pridmore teased that the deal will unleash a plethora of betting offerings for fans of professional hockey. He said that PROLINE will offer bets on which team is going to score first, at what point of the game the first goal will happen, how many goals a team is going to score throughout the whole game, etc. Pridmore emphasized that a large variety of offerings boosts engagement and client retention. He noted:
“I think having the generic win-lose bet can sometimes be a little bit too straightforward. If your team is losing significantly, it kind of takes the fun out of the game right away if you know that you’ve lost that game already whereas you might have a bet on the score at the third period only.”
OLG chief digital and strategy officer Dave Pridmore
Kyle McCann, the senior vice president of the NHL’s North American business development, welcomed OLG as the league’s partner in Ontario. He noted that the operator has a great track record for its forty years of operation. Because of this, it is an ideal partner as the NHL continues its foray into the Canadian market.
OLG recently launched betting series called OLGGamePlan in collaboration with Twitter and so.da. Through this, the operator aims to keep fans informed about the latest developments in the world of gambling.