In a year in which NHL viewership has been struggling, the event of the All-Star weekend was not expected to be any different. With events such as the New Year’s Eve Winter Classic getting record low viewership and regular season ratings being extremely low, an All-Star weekend which crossed over days with the highly-rated NBA All-Star weekend was not expected to be very different. However, the new format which puts player’s national pride on the line has caused an explosive buzz for not just hockey fans, but casual sports fans as well.
The new international tournament-style format which features a 4 team tournament, including the countries of USA, Canada, Sweden, and Finland filled with the NHL’s best players has caused an incredible buzz across social media, with television ratings to match the hype as well. According to ESPN, the USA-Canada game averaged 4.4 million viewers with a peak around 5.2 million, making it the most viewed non-Stanley Cup broadcast since 2019.
With the NHL’s changeup on their All-Star format being so successful this year, the light on the NBA’s continued failure to reinvigorate the competitiveness and viewership of their of All-Star events shines even brighter. The league’s attendance and effort struggle from the world’s best basketball players continued on this year, with G-League player Mac McClung winning his third straight dunk contest, and Lebron James backing out last minute, it is clear the celebratory weekend is not a priority of NBA players. With the success of the NHL’s international format, we will see if the NBA changes to similar format in 2026.
The NHL is currently set to return to their normal All-Star game format next year at UBS Arena is Long Island. With the great success of the Four Nations Faceoff, we will see if the league decides to stick with their current plan or continue on with the international format.
