NHL, NHLPA announce content partnership with Italy’s Serie A ahead of 2026 Olympics

TORONTO — The NHL and NHLPA announced a content partnership with top-flight Italian soccer league Lega Serie A on Tuesday ahead of the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics.

NHL players will return to Olympic ice for the first time since 2014 when the men’s hockey tournament begins Feb. 11 in Milan.

The NHL-Serie A partnership involves multiple promotional activities.

Serie A stars and past greats will join NHL players for events during the NHL/NHLPA European player media tour in Milan on Aug. 22, one day before the 2025-26 season begins in Italy’s top soccer league.

NHL players, meanwhile, will visit the training grounds of several Serie A clubs and attend a match at Milan’s San Siro stadium, home to AC Milan and Inter Milan.

The NHL said a jersey exchange between Serie A greats Andrea Pirlo and Marco Materazzi, and New York Rangers centre Mika Zibanejad at Madison Square Garden in March sparked the “first-of-its-kind” partnership between a North American pro league and European soccer league.

“As a global sport with players from 21 countries, the NHL is thrilled to collaborate with Lega Serie A to create unique content that celebrates the intersection of hockey and soccer,” said Keith Wachtel, President, NHL Business, in a statement. “With the Winter Olympics on the horizon, Milan will serve as a focal point for sports fans around the world, so we are delighted to take the opportunity to promote our top hockey players in the environments of the biggest sport in Italy.

“We look forward to working with Lega Serie A to deliver world-class events highlighting both leagues’ history, heritage, and shared culture.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 22, 2025.