The 2025 IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation) World Championship, the premier international ice hockey tournament, wrapped up on Memorial Day with the United States defeating Switzerland 1-0 in overtime.
NHL star Tage Thompson scored the game-winning goal, securing the U.S.’s first gold medal in 92 years. What made this year’s competition stand out was its expanded global reach, attracting new audiences and boosting international participation like never before.
Quick Highlights:
- IIHF launched IIHF.tv, a centralized OTT streaming platform, to broadcast the tournament in over 100 territories and vastly expand its global reach.
- Each game featured at least 31 camera angles, with the final using 34.
- Škoda marked its 32nd year sponsoring IIHF and debuted new electric vehicles and redesigned the MVP trophy, enhancing fan experience with interactive fan zones.
- Unibet joined as an official sponsor, aiming to deepen fan engagement through digital content and experiences.
Global Reach
Prior to this year’s competition, the International Ice Hockey Federation announced IIHF.tv., a new centralized OTT streaming platform.
The IIHF’s exclusive media and marketing partner Infront took charge of this streaming initiative, while Sportsway Media group was responsible for coverage of lower division tournaments. IIHF.tv will now broadcast up to 600 ice hockey games per season, including the World Men’s, Women’s, Under-20, and Under-18 World Juniors tournaments. The content is accessible in over 100 territories through a subscription model.
According to Amikam Kranz, Senior Vice President of Media, Betting & Technology at Infront, the launch of IIHF.tv “marks a new opportunity for international ice hockey to grow and welcome new fans on a global scale with a digital home of hockey. Easily accessible content, live and on-demand streaming, and flexible subscriptions will help us to reach untapped audiences.”
Select matches were also broadcast on NHL Network and made available to stream on Fubo.
Innovative Broadcasting
The 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship pushed production boundaries, using at least 31 camera angles per game—34 for the gold medal match between the U.S. and Switzerland. Camera operators were granted more time on the ice, including during penalty shootouts, giving fans immersive angles that bring them closer to the action than ever before.
Super slow-motion replays and in-goal cameras now feature embedded game clocks for precise video reviews. “These situations come down to 1/10 of a second,” said Uzi Kakuda, head of Infront Productions. “So we embed the game clock into the in-goal camera feeds for the game officials, which the viewer also gets to see.”
With hockey’s fast pace, every upgrade counts. Remote-operated cameras had to respond faster than in almost any other sport, and those placed inside goals were specially reinforced to withstand direct puck impacts.
Challenges and Market Competition
Timing posed one of the key challenges for the IIHF World Championship. The tournament overlapped with the Stanley Cup Playoffs, a marquee event that draws massive attention across the hockey world.
Another drawback to the Stanley Cup Playoffs overlapping with the World Championship is that several NHL superstars including Connor McDavid, Brad Marchand, and Roope Hintz were unavailable to compete for their national teams. This has fueled a narrative that without full-strength rosters, the tournament is less meaningful.
Finally, the early elimination of Team Canada, the hockey-obsessed nation, was a major blow to tournament viewership. Canada’s shocking 2–1 loss to cohost Denmark in the quarterfinals marked one of the biggest upsets in tournament history. While dramatic stories like this can boost global interest, Canada’s exit likely led to a steep domestic drop-off in engagement.
Strategic IIHF World Championship Sponsorships
At Athelo Group, we focus on scalable long-term strategic partnerships, and one of the major success stories of the IIHF World Championships has been the relationship between the IIHF and Czech automobile manufacturer Škoda. A main partner since 1993, Škoda used this year’s tournament to execute a multifaceted brand activation, demonstrating how sponsorships can go beyond simple visibility and create true audience engagement.
Škoda created the MVP trophy for the tournament in 2018 and redesigned the award for this year, drawing inspiration from its “Modern Solid design language.” The brand also debuted two new fully electric vehicles—the Enyaq RS and Enyaq Coupé RS during its activation event.
To increase presence across host cities, Škoda provided 45 vehicles to the event, including 30 fully electric cars and 15 hybrids. The brand helped draw 490,000 spectators to Škoda-sponsored fan zones in Sweden and Denmark, offering interactive activations like mini games, karaoke, and sessions inside a specially equipped Elroq.
Unibet also became an official sponsor of this year’s tournament. “By engaging fans with exciting content and experiences, we aim to enhance the excitement of the tournament and make this a truly memorable event for everyone involved,” said Philip Lagström, general manager at Kindred Group Sweden.
What the Future Holds
The popularity of ice hockey has grown steadily, with the 4 Nations Faceoff drawing 16.2 million viewers across North America and becoming ESPN’s most-watched hockey game ever, with 9.3 million tuning in from the U.S. alone.
While this year’s IIHF World Championship faced challenges—NHL playoff overlap, notable player absences, and an early Canadian exit—it still delivered compelling hockey and strong brand activations. And the timing couldn’t be better.
With NHL players returning to Olympic play in 2026 and the World Cup of Hockey slated for 2028, ice hockey is on the brink of a global breakout.