Playmaker Acquires TNN to Strengthen Canadian Exposure

Playmaker Capital, a digital sports media company, has boosted its footprint in the Canadian market through the acquisition of The Nation Network (TNN) and its subsidiary, Daily Faceoff (DFO). TNN focuses on the delivery of insightful data-driven media coverage for hockey fans in Canada, runs a number of community sites, podcasts and has a hockey reference property, i.e.  DFO. Playmaker CEO Jordan Gnat commented on this partnership and what its expected results are with a particular focus on Q1 2022:

“TNN is Playmaker’s first acquisition in our home market of Canada, giving Playmaker true audience reach from the top of Canada to the bottom of Argentina. This is particularly important in Canada as we look towards Q1 2022 when third party sports betting operators will be permitted to operate in Ontario.”

Playmaker CEO Jordan Gnat

TNN has been able to generate over one billion page views since the project was launched in 2007 by its current CEO, Jay Downton. Presently, TNN’s assets attract a combined annual audience of 27 million consumers in North America. The company focuses on delivering detailed breakdown analyses, news, and fantasy predictions for various sports to a highly-engaged group of sports fans.

There is also a subscription model that TNN has been able to leverage successfully over the years, courtesy of its advanced and value-added product. TNN has a number of established hockey analysts who are now part of the Playmaker team. Frank Seravalli, a NA authority on hockey, serves as DFO’s president of hockey content. 

He is also president of the Hockey Writers Association and is one of the most respected sources of insights into the National Hockey League (NHL). Playmaker has chosen its partner well, with TNN and DFO generating an estimated 5.2 million monthly sessions and engaging with some 5.4 million social media followers globally.

Some of TNN’s prominent web properties include Canucksarmy, Hockeyfights.com, and Daily Faceoff. Commenting on this, Downton argued that he and the company were “beyond excited” to be joining the Playmaker ranks. 

“This is a huge momentum builder for The Nation Network as it will allow us to invest more in content creation, talent recruitment, partnerships, and strategic acquisitions, all of which will better serve and expand our amazing online community. We are excited to get to work.”

TNN CEO Jay Downton

Playmaker is hardly the only entity that has noticed TNN. In September, the company signed a partnership with PointsBet Canada, and the sportsbook became the official betting partner of the network. 

TNN stands to benefit from its alliance with PointsBet as the sportsbook is going to deliver odds integrations, analysis from the company’s own betting experts, and various enhanced tools to boost the overall engagement across the entire portfolio of TNN platforms. 

Playmaker is further set to benefit from TNN’s acquisition by tapping into a new revenue stream, to name the subscription-based content model. The convergence of NHL and hockey talent and analysts will elevate the companies’ combined offer, executives agree.