Today, ESPN launched its National Hockey League (NHL) season-opening campaign, “To Know Hockey is to Love Hockey.” The creative will debut on October 2 during ESPN’s coverage of the Monday Night Football game between the Seattle Seahawks and New York Giants.
- The campaign was designed to showcase the electricity of the sport and its ability to capture the heads and hearts of fans.
- “To Know Hockey Is To Love Hockey” is more than a celebration of the incredible game play, it’s about the visceral emotion you feel while watching it, which is why, in the end, you can’t help but love it.
- In the season-opening launch spots, “You Know It,” created in partnership with Austin-based advertising agency, Preacher; ESPN showcases many of the emotions athletes and fans go through when consuming this unique sport, and the way it pulls them deeper into hockey fandom.
- There are two spots for both linear and ESPN+ running for two months.
- Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby and longtime goalie and current Florida Panthers netminder Sergei Bobrovsky are featured within the commercial, among many other NHL stars.
- The NHL 2023-24 season begins in North America on Tuesday, October 10, with an opening night tripleheader face-off on ESPN and ESPN+.
What they’re saying:
- Lucas Ferraro, ESPN Senior Director of Sports Marketing: “ESPN and ESPN+ are the home of hockey content for NHL fans. This creative showcases why fans who feel this sport deep down inside truly embrace it while also inviting those less familiar with hockey to join in on the action. ESPN and ESPN+ are here for fans throughout the journey – from opening night all the way to the Stanley Cup Final – and we cannot wait for the puck to drop on what is sure to be another special season of hockey.”