- PointsBet Canada has announced a promotional partnership with the producers of the Canadian TV series Trailer Park Boys.
- Canada legalized single game wagering last year though the market is still in development as regulation is set up at the provincial level.
- PointsBet Canada has also partnered with other Canadian based entities such as Curling Canada.
The non-stop barrage of sportsbook promotional partnerships continues apace and a ‘second front’ is now developing in Canada. With the legalization of single game wagering last year, sportsbooks are now looking to position themselves to be part of a market that is developing slowly–each province is responsible for their own gaming regulatory framework–but eventually expected to be very lucrative. With the US sports betting market showing signs of stagnation due to bone headed regulation it’s not a bad idea for any sportsbook to ‘hedge their bets’.
One of the most interesting promotional partnerships to be announced comes courtesy of the Canadian subsidiary of Australian sportsbook PointsBet. PointsBet has carved out a decent niche in the US market and is trying to position their Canadian division as ‘Canada’s Sportsbook’. Their latest partnership in this effort is with the producers of the Canadian TV series Trailer Park Boys. That would be Halifax based TPB Productions which is the commercial entity that controls the intellectual property of the Trailer Park Boys. Actually, I’ll let the press release explain it:
TPB Productions is a Nova Scotia-based company indirectly controlled by actors Mike Smith, John Paul Tremblay and Robb Wells. The company owns and manages all intellectual property rights associated with Trailer Park Boys, including Canadian and international trademarks, copyrights and music publishing assets.
Of course, PointsBet didn’t sign a deal with the Trailer Park Boys because of this corporate entity and the press release reflects that. The Trailer Park Boys are going to be part of a promotional campaign–called ‘authentic content collaboration’ in press release parlance–and are quoted ‘in character’ in the press release. This provides a funny twist to an otherwise pedestrian partnership announcement. We’ll start with Nic Sulsky, Chief Commercial Officer of PointsBet Canada, to talk about the deal:
“Our mission from day one has been to build a sportsbook as authentically Canadian as poutine. And nothing says Canadiana more than the Trailer Park Boys. We are thrilled to have Bubbles, Ricky, and Julian join Canada’s Sportsbook to bring fans a new, innovative experience.”
Here’s the announcement of the partnership and what it entails–don’t worry, we’ll get to the quotes from the Trailer Park Boys themselves in a minute:
PointsBet Canada and the Trailer Park Boys are announcing an exclusive partnership that will see PointsBet go where no other sportsbook has gone before – Sunnyvale Trailer Park.
The multi-year deal will include authentic content collaboration appearing on the Trailer Park Boys and PointsBet Canada owned channels. The Trailer Park Boys will also be appearing in PointsBet’s advertising campaigns, activations, and special VIP-style events. While announcing the new partnership, PointsBet Canada released a clip teasing the company’s first ad featuring the Trailer Park Boys, which consumers will see beginning Monday, January 17th, 2022.
Here’s the teaser clip referred to above:
And now we’ll hear from Bubbles, Ricky and Julian of the Trailer Park Boys. Here’s Bubbles:
“I’m very excited to be teaming up with PointsBet Canada. I get to meet all kinds of cool Canadian athletes AND everything will be totally legal which is a new thing for Ricky and Julian. I think it’s fantastic!”
Ricky is up next:
“As a proudest Canadian, I think it’s a real flattering being asked to be part of this. This celebrates Canadian sports and I can’t wait to meet a bunch of our bestest in the world athletes.”
Julian is more focused on the ‘self improvement’ that comes with working with a first rate enterprise such as PointsBet:
“It’s great to finally have a legit job with such a cool company. I’m proud of myself.”
David Rivers, Vice-President of Marketing for PointsBet Canada, is not a character on the TV show but summed up the company’s promotional efforts north of the border:
“Whether it is Curling Canada, the NHLAA, or the Trailer Park Boys, we are committed to building a brand and identity that acknowledges the little intricacies that make us all proud to be Canadian.”
And, yes, this makes a sportsbook promotional partnership with Letterkenny all but inevitable.
