The NHL sweetened its new deal with PointsBet by receiving equity in the sports betting operator.
As part of an agreement that names PointsBet an “Official Sports Betting Partner of the NHL,” the Australian-based operator is set to allocate 43,106 shares to the NHL.
The shares are currently worth around $531,000 and will be equally issued after 12 months, 24 months and 36 months.
The move comes after PointsBet became the exclusive betting partner for NBC Sports in August in a five-year deal valued at around $500 million. PointsBet content will now be featured during NBC’s broadcasts of the NHL.
FanDuel, William Hill and MGM have all previously partnered with the league.
This isn’t the NHL’s first equity deal in sports betting either; it invested in DraftKings in 2014 before the betting operator went public.
