Opinion: Clio’s partnership with the Vancouver Canucks feels like a win-win-win scenario

As a lifelong hockey fan, my reaction when it was announced that NHL teams would introduce ads on jerseys and helmets was similar to my reaction when I get a text about an upcoming dentist appointment, or a public relations company asks to review my questions beforehand: an audible sigh.

Like those other things, ads coming to hockey jerseys was going to be an inevitability at some point. Corporate sponsors already squish each other on the rotating ice and board ads and the in-game segments are named after sports betting websites and beer.

So, last year, when the Canucks added TD as their home jersey sponsor, I did sigh. It wasn’t bad. The green of the logo obviously fit with the team’s colours, and the helmets were already adorned with the logo of Vancouver-based miner NexGen Energy. The sponsor choice could have been a lot worse, like when the Toronto Maple Leafs chose to represent the worst pizza restaurant in the country on their helmets. (Actually, that’s probably a fit.)

If nothing can remain sacred, we can at least hope that the things we hold dear can be corporatized in a manner that isn’t completely soul-crushing. That’s asking for a lot, I know—just look at the arena names in the NHL where names like Rogers and Scotiabank can be found more than once.

But then it kinda happened. This week’s announcement that Clio will be the away jersey sponsor of the Canucks really does feel like a win for all involved. Let’s dive into the different parties affected.

It’s a win for Clio 

This is somewhat obvious. The Burnaby-based legaltech firm, which is enjoying a massive year after announcing a US$900 million investment in the summer that valued the company at US$3 billion, has quite clearly transitioned from “Vancouver startup that tech and biz people hold in high esteem” to unquestionable household name. The company stands to benefit from the name recognition and opportunities that being so closely associated with one of the country’s most popular sports teams will bring.

It’s a win for the Canucks 

Partnering with a local, homegrown firm is just generally a smart move and one that should help the team connect with its fanbase and seem less of a faceless corporate entity. There are also, one imagines, activations and fan events that partnering with a local firm enables that wouldn’t be there with a multinational corporation, for instance.

It’s also worth noting that Clio’s reputation in the B.C. business and tech world is about as clean as it gets for a company its size.

It’s a win for Canucks’ fans

Simply put, the jerseys look pretty good. The advertisement is not very big or invasive and the company’s logo fits in well with the team’s colour scheme. Sure, ads on jerseys is something that some of us will always have a problem accepting. But, when they’re done like this, it leaves a lot less to complain about.