World’s Best Countries to Visit: Where Canadians Want to Travel; Expedia and NHL Sign Partnership Deal

Expedia and the National Hockey League today announced a multi-year North American partnership naming Expedia the Official Travel Partner of the NHL in North America. As part of the agreement, Expedia will gain marketing rights and NHL designations in the U.S. and Canada. In addition to maintaining its exclusive status as the Official Travel Partner of the NHL in North America, Expedia also retains exclusive rights in Online Travel, Vacation Rentals, and Hotels. 

Through the partnership, Expedia will have brand presence on the NHL’s digitally enhanced dasherboards throughout the regular season and Stanley Cup Playoffs. Expedia will also be part of some of the League’s most iconic events, including NHL All-Star Weekend, NHL Heritage Classic, NHL Winter Classic, and NHL Stadium Series.

The partnership extends online as well, where Expedia will serve as the presenting sponsor of the Stanley Cup Playoffs Bracket Challenge and the Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Chance Bracket. NHL.com will also provide NHL fans with a website linked opportunity to combine travel with regular season or Stanley Cup Playoffs games. Together, the activations and digital touch points are designed to give traveling fans an easy way to engage in the NHL season and allow them to plan their next trip around games.

Sports tourism has emerged as a major force around the world, so this is a move that seems to make good sense for Expedia.