Why no NHL?

Kevlar68

Well-Known Member
Thread starter #1
Ok so i'm just wondering why the UK doesn't get any NHL games live.
The reason for asking this is that i've just read that MLB is coming to London.
I can understand NFL as they have lots of exposure on British TV but very little in the way of UK league or teams with little fan base for these UK teams.
NBA has had British TV exposure but not a great deal and the British league isn't that big a not hugely supported.
Now MLB which i haven't seen at all on British TV, maybe i missed it but again no real British league as such and even less supporters.
I'm sure at one point NBA has also come to the UK.

Out of NHL. MLB, NFL and NBA in Britain ice hockey has a proper league, a large live fan base and proper arenas, not just a parks pitch.

Is the fact that our arenas even the biggest Belfast with 11,000 capacity isn't big enough to create the revenue for 2 teams to visit?
Calgary Saddledome a quite old arena holds 19,000.
We have packed out a playoff weekend so wouldn't an NHL weekend sell out quite easily? Look at all the ice hockey teams there are in the UK.
The supporters are definitely here to watch a NHL weekend.

Was just wondering why out of all the major American sports NHL never been to UK.
 
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Diafol

Well-Known Member
#2
They have.
15 years ago now ( ! )






Maybe our other arenas are too small and the O2 want too much money to close down for a week to put an ice pad in ?

Isn't it the busiest arena in the UK ?
Would cost an absolute fortune to do I would imagine, the ticket prices would probably be eye-watering as a result.

NFL / NBA or even MLB doesn't have those problems, those games are probably relatively easy to organise in comparison.
 
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Kevlar68

Well-Known Member
Thread starter #3
I think in Calgary I paid $55-65 a seat per game for 3 games, blue jackets, coyotes and Knights.
Yeah I think to install a temp ice pad is big money but I'd pay that amount again even more here in UK to watch NHL especially players like Mcdavid or ovechkin, look at the price to watch a UK Saturday playoff day.

Birmingham utilita arena uses a temp ice pad 15000 capacity and London ovo 12000 capacity as they have dancing on ice tour. Then again you need boarding, plexi, netting so all adds up to staging costs I guess.
 
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rocketbob

Well-Known Member
#4
With our train and hotel prices it is likely cheaper for me to go and watch the NHL games in Prague this year and great cheap beer too. I get the point though. It would be nice to have the recognition from the NHL of having a game in the UK. Maybe an outdoor game at a Scottish football stadium in January would be a cheaper way to do it than the O2.
 
#5
Ok so i'm just wondering why the UK doesn't get any NHL games live.
The reason for asking this is that i've just read that MLB is coming to London.
I can understand NFL as they have lots of exposure on British TV but very little in the way of UK league or teams with little fan base for these UK teams.
NBA has had British TV exposure but not a great deal and the British league isn't that big a not hugely supported.
Now MLB which i haven't seen at all on British TV, maybe i missed it but again no real British league as such and even less supporters.
I'm sure at one point NBA has also come to the UK.

Out of NHL. MLB, NFL and NBA in Britain ice hockey has a proper league, a large live fan base and proper arenas, not just a parks pitch.

Is the fact that our arenas even the biggest Belfast with 11,000 capacity isn't big enough to create the revenue for 2 teams to visit?
Calgary Saddledome a quite old arena holds 19,000.
We have packed out a playoff weekend so wouldn't an NHL weekend sell out quite easily? Look at all the ice hockey teams there are in the UK.
The supporters are definitely here to watch a NHL weekend.

Was just wondering why out of all the major American sports NHL never been to UK.
You are asking a rhetorical question. The answer must be found in the money :) Apparently, they did not agree on the money for the broadcast. If it was profitable in the UK, you would have seen the NHL broadcasts.
 
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