Viaplay is set to become the streaming home of the National Hockey League (NHL) and KSW mixed martial arts (MMA) in the UK.
The collaboration means that up to 1,400 games from the league will be shown on the platform every year until 2027, alongside 12 ‘high-impact’ live events from the European MMA promotion annually until 2025.
Furthermore, Viaplay will launch in the UK in the second half of 2022 with what is being described as a broad streaming offering that combines live sports with original Nordic content.
David Proper, NHL Senior Executive Vice President of Media & International Strategy, stated: “Viaplay has been an outstanding partner and key stakeholder in the NHL’s strategy to deliver the game to as many fans as possible throughout the world.
“We look forward to building on our shared commitment to bring the world’s best hockey players to a broader audience and are thrilled to have expanded our relationship with Viaplay.”
From late 2022 through to the 2026-2027 season, fans in the UK will be able to stream every regular season game live on Viaplay, including all NHL Saturday and NHL Sunday games, together with the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Stanley Cup Final and other marquee events.
These include the NHL Winter Classic, NHL All-Star Game, NHL Stadium Series, NHL Heritage Classic and NHL Global Series. The agreement extends Viaplay and the NHL’s long-term partnership to 10 European markets.
Moreover, Viaplay and KSW are now working together in 11 countries, and the first KSW event shown on Viaplay in the UK will be later this year. The platform is part of the NENT Group.
“We’re already expanding Viaplay’s UK sports line-up with more long-term rights that put us firmly on the map,” added Peter Nørrelund, NENT Group Chief Sports Officer. “We have worked with the NHL for 19 years in our Nordic markets, which proves the quality of our coverage.
“KSW is one of our fastest-growing partnerships and will be broadly available in the UK for the first time. These deals are great news for UK sports fans – and there’s more to come.”
