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WHL Prince George Cougars

Cougars Named BC Division Nominee for WHL Business of the Year

April 2, 2024 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Prince George Cougars News Release


The Prince George Cougars are the BC Division nominee for the WHL Business Award. The league announced all four division nominees this morning.

The 2023-24 WHL season saw the Cougars enjoy increases in all areas of ticket sales, thanks to a dedicated sales team and much-improved marketing strategy.

The Cougars led the WHL in increased attendance, enjoying a jump of 29 per cent from 2022-23 to 2023-24. Season membership sales have increased 43 per cent from 2022-23 and now exceed pre-COVID levels.

The Cougars specialty loge seating space continues to be highly sought after, with 40 premium seats sold out once again in 2023-24. Suites at CN Centre were completely sold out for 2023-24 with demand resulting in a waiting list for the 2024-25 season.

New game-night experiences have helped to enrich the atmosphere in CN Centre on Cougars game days, including a lineup featuring Benchwarmers, High-5 Tunnel, Fanboni, Three Stars Presentation, and Junior Cougar.

Promotional theme nights in Prince George also served as a significant contributor to the revitalized experience in 2023-24, providing the Cougars with the opportunity to reach new fans. Over the course of the campaign, the Cougars celebrated a number of promotional theme nights, including:

Community Heroes Weekend in support of teachers, healthcare workers, firefighters, RCMP, first responders, wildfire service members, search and rescue, and more.

Teddy Bear Toss

Indigenous Night, which welcomed 12 different First Nations communities and included a speciality uniform and logo designed by local Lheidli T'enneh First Nation artist Kym Gouchie.

Pink in the Rink, which featured specialty uniforms and 50/50 sales of nearly $145,000 with proceeds benefitting the B.C. Cancer Foundation in support of cancer research in Prince George.

Retro Night, which re-introduced fans to a celebrated nostalgic Cougars brand.

Across 34 home games, including the various theme nights, the Cougars managed to increase overall 50/50 ticket sales to nearly $1 million in 2023-24, up from roughly $600,000 in 2022-23. Community groups that benefitted from the Cougars impressive 50/50 include the Prince George Community Foundation, B.C. Cancer Foundation, Salvation Army Foodbank and Spirit of the North Healthcare.

On the merchandise front, the Cougars have diversified their offerings, revamped the team store and taken a different approach to marketing the product, resulting in significant increases in sales.

Corporate sponsors in Northern B.C. have responded, resulting in a 74-per-cent increase in overall corporate sponsorship sales from 2022-23 to 2023-24.

Check out the Prince George Cougars Statistics



Western Hockey League Stories from April 2, 2024


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