Honda to sponsor NHL All-Star Weekend as part of expanded relationship

NEW YORK / TORONTO ─ The National Hockey League® (NHL) today announced it has expanded its relationship with Honda. As part of a multi-year agreement, American Honda Motor Co. will include Honda Canada Inc. as League sponsor in the automotive category in North America.

Honda will sustain its strong commitment to the League's national broadcast partners, NBC in the U.S. and Rogers in Canada. Honda will further support its NHL® relationship through a significant media commitment including promotions across the NHL's media platforms such as NHL.com, NHL Social™ and NHL Mobile™. The new agreement also leverages the NHL brand through use of League marks and collective use of team marks in Honda's national consumer and trade advertising and promotion.

"Aligning the personality of Honda vehicles with the NHL is a natural extension of our fun-spirited brand," said Jeff Conrad, senior vice president and general manager Honda Division, "Participating in and being a part of sporting tradition also matches well with the activities of our owners. We're thrilled to expand this relationship with the NHL in so many key ways to showcase the clean, safe and versatile nature of our lineup."

"Hockey is a defining aspect of our culture and our relationship with the NHL is something we're very proud of," said Dave Gardner, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Honda Canada Inc. "Whether you're a player or a spectator, hockey is something millions of Canadians are passionate about and that same level of excitement runs deep within Honda."

Honda will continue its participation and activations at key NHL events throughout the season. Honda's award-winning vehicles, including the all-new 2016 Honda HR-V crossover, and Honda CR-V, which is the 2015 Motor Trend Sport/Utility of the year, and Honda Civic, the number one selling car in Canada for the past 16 years, will activate across key events including NHL Face-Off™, NHL Winter Classic®, NHL® All-Star Weekend, NHL Heritage Classic™, NHL Stadium Series™, NHL Awards™, and NHL Draft™, as well as throughout the Stanley Cup® Playoffs and Stanley Cup Final.

"Honda has been a longtime supportive sponsor of the League and this expansion of the relationship into Canada is a validation of the power of the NHL brand and our fan base," said Keith Wachtel, NHL Executive Vice President of Global Partnerships. "We look forward to exciting and engaging activations for hockey fans on both sides of the border."

At the 2015 NHL All-Star Weekend, Honda will serve as title sponsor for the 2015 Honda NHL All-Star Skills Competition™ taking place on Jan. 24, where the greatest players in the League will face off in a series of on-ice contests including the fastest skater, accuracy shooting, hardest shot, and the breakaway challenge, among others. Honda will also be the title sponsor of the 2015 Honda NHL® All-Star Game on Jan. 25, where the Columbus Blue Jackets will host elite NHL players, in front of thousands of fans.

The 2015 NHL All-Star Weekend is a fitting location for Honda to make a splash and to celebrate its relationship with the National Hockey League. Ohio is home to 11 Honda facilities including a four-million square foot facility at the center of designing and producing vehicles for more than 100 countries around the world.