NEW YORK (November 25, 2025) – Building on last season’s success, and together with League partners SAP and ESPN’s Take Back Sports initiative, powered by Disney, the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) and National Hockey League (NHL) announced today, the second installment of the Industry Growth Fund’s (IGF) Hockey Innovation Competition.
The Hockey Innovation Competition presented by SAP, is an entrepreneurial initiative developed through the NHL and NHLPA’s Industry Growth Fund. The program was designed to harness the creativity and technological expertise of university and college students, encouraging them to generate innovative ideas for the future of hockey.
During its inaugural year, the competition quickly gained popularity among students and educators and as a result, post-secondary professors began developing courses that aligned with the competition’s objectives. This synergy enabled students not only to earn academic credits, but also to enhance their business acumen, providing them with real-world experience as they work on solutions to help shape the future of the sport.
The NHL Unites Sunshine Series edition of the competition invited undergraduate and graduate students from the State of Florida, to reimagine how sport can be more inclusive, accessible, and fun for everyone. Backed by a commitment to explore innovation, students were challenged to design solutions that are scalable, impactful and advance the growth of hockey.
Florida has become one of the NHL’s fastest-growing markets — with recent Stanley Cup wins by the Tampa Bay Lightning (2020, 2021) and Florida Panthers (2024, 2025) sparking record fan engagement and youth participation. With hockey’s footprint expanding across the Sunshine State, there has never been a better time to reimagine how fans connect with the game.
Finalists of the Hockey Innovation Competition will present their pitches to a panel of judges from competition partners and industry leaders who are looking for the most innovative, impactful and sustainable strategies to grow the game of hockey at ESPN Wide World of Sports in January.
Over the last 10 years, SAP and the NHL have collaborated to provide technological advancements that benefit coaches, players, fans, and the League. The NHL and SAP have a long history of collaborating to identify and utilize a portfolio of SAP solutions to elevate the League’s business. The Hockey Innovation Competition takes the collaboration to a new level through the SAP University Alliances program. With it, SAP helps educators around the world bridge the gap between theory and real-world practice, equipping students with valuable, in-demand SAP skills. More than one million students from 2,700 educational institutions get a “hands-on” experience with SAP each year.
"At SAP, we believe that innovation drives progress not only within our technology but also in the communities we serve. The Hockey Innovation Competition is an empowering initiative that aligns with our commitment to fostering creativity and collaboration among the next generation. We are excited to see how the students' innovative solutions will shape the future of hockey and inspire passion for the game,” said Amy Schulz, Senior Director of Global Sponsorships at SAP.
Earlier this year, ESPN launched its Take Back Sports initiative dedicated to increasing access to play for young athletes—as only 38.3% of kids ages 6-12 played sports in 2023 on a regular basis, according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association and the Aspen Institute’s State of Play 2024 report. Together with the NHL, NHLPA and SAP, the Hockey Innovation Competition will help ESPN strengthen youth sports participation through hockey, as students develop ideas to strengthen hockey’s future by expanding participation, growing safe access and making the game more fun. Students will be challenged to create innovative solutions in any community that can impact hockey.
“ESPN is proud to collaborate with the NHL, NHLPA and SAP on the Hockey Innovation Competition and inspire students to develop creative solutions to grow youth hockey,” said Kevin Martinez, Vice President of ESPN Corporate Citizenship. “We believe youth hockey thrives when young players and their communities are empowered, and we’re excited to work with these students to explore new ways to expand access, boost participation and make the game even more enjoyable.”
Innovation Pillars:
Focusing on the foundational elements that make sport meaningful, students were asked to leverage one of three innovation pillars:
- Supporting the People Who Power Sport: Sports can’t thrive without coaches, referees, trainers, parents and volunteers – yet these people are often over capacity, under-supported, or overlooked. How can we strengthen the way coaches, volunteers, and officials are trained, supported, and celebrated – in ways that make being part of sport rewarding, not stressful?
- Expanding Spaces for Play: Many communities don’t have affordable, safe, or accessible spaces for organized or pickup hockey. How can we reclaim everyday spaces in Florida -- schoolyards, gyms, church parking lots, and parks -- and turn them into places where hockey and other sports can thrive?
- Putting Fun Back at the Center of Sport: Too often, youth sports are dominated by pressure to win, high costs, and competition. ESPN’s Take Back Sports is about returning sport to fun, creativity, and friendship. How can we make hockey (and other sports) a fun, low-pressure space where kids and families want to participate?
Final Pitch and Competition Format:
The 2026 NHL/NHLPA Hockey Innovation Competition opened for entries on October 6 with a submission deadline of November 17. Overall, 28 proposals were submitted from 12 participating colleges and universities incorporating over 100 students from first year to Masters and MBA programs representing 21 degrees/programs including Nursing, Political Science, Engineering, Finance, Juris Doctor, Marketing, Journalism and Business Administration and Sport Management. At the beginning of December, a selection committee will review the proposals and narrow the field down to 20 teams. Each team will have the opportunity to present their idea in a virtual setting before six finalists are selected.
The final teams will be paired with industry mentors, who will assist in refining the pitch, providing business insights and network support. NHL on ESPN personality Arda Öcal will host Final Pitch Day at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports on January 22, 2026. The judging panel will comprise industry leaders from all partners.
Finalists will vie for several awards including The Innovator Award, The Changemaker Award, scholarship grants, VIP experiences, 2026 Navy Federal Credit Union Stadium Series tickets and swag packages from event partners.
History:
The first iteration of the competition hosted in January 2025, attracted more than 250 students from 13 Universities and Colleges across Ontario. The competition yielded 63 unique and creative submissions that focused on the technology experience, the customer experience (in-game or at-home) and enhancing existing programs in either the education or mobile tour experience sectors. The winning team from the University of Guelph and the runner-up team from Humber Polytechnic were awarded scholarship funding as well as a special NHL experience.
A third edition of the Hockey Innovation Competition presented by SAP is scheduled to take place in Ontario beginning in Spring 2026. The theme of the Spring competition will be reimagining hockey infrastructure to be more sustainable, multi-functional, and technologically advanced -- while enhancing the family and community experience. Further details will be announced in the new year.
About The NHL/NHLPA Industry Growth Fund:
Established in 2013 by the National Hockey League and National Hockey League Players’ Association, and supported by the NHL’s 32 Clubs, the Industry Growth Fund (IGF) was created to support and accelerate the development of NHL and Club business initiatives and projects that promote long-term fan development and increase participation at all levels of hockey with an emphasis on youth.
The IGF focuses on building hockey awareness and avidity both in local Club markets and on a national level (in the United States and Canada) by subsidizing League-wide programs and local Club initiatives, reaching diverse audiences and offering unique hockey opportunities for players and fans.
Since its inception, the IGF has dedicated more than $200 million to develop programming, create initiatives, host events and provide education that drives awareness and brings hockey to communities across North America.
Tickets to the 2026 Discover NHL Winter Series™ are available via Ticketmaster, the official ticketing partner of the NHL.
