NHL: naming rights for all four divisions awarded to Honda, Scotiabank, Discover and MassMutual

The National Hockey League has awarded the naming rights for its four divisions (West, North, Central and East) to Honda (car manufacturer), Scotiabank (banking), Discover (financial services) and MassMutual (insurance) for the 2020-21 season, announced the National Hockey League on 05/01/2020. The 2020-21 season, shortened due to the Covid-19 pandemic, is scheduled to begin on 13/01/2020.

This is the first time that the divisions/conferences of an American sport (NBA, NHL, NFL, MLB, MLS) have had a title sponsor. The announcement was accompanied by a temporary reorganisation of NHL divisions for 2020-21. Due to the health crisis, the United States has closed its borders with Canada. As a result, all Canadian franchises have been grouped together in the Scotia NHL North Division.

Before authorising the naming of its divisions, the NHL was allowing franchises to market their helmet sponsorship space in order to help them recover some of the revenue lost during matches played behind closed doors. Prudential Financial, a US company specialised in financial products and services, and…