Labatt File Lawsuit Against Record NHL Deal with Molson Coors

According to a report in Canadian newspaper, the Toronto Star, Labatt has asked the Ontario Superior Court to “toss out” the National Hockey League’s (NHL) new US$375m sponsorship agreement with Molson Coors.

Labatt who Molson Coors will effectively replace as primary sponsor to the NHL, claims that it reached a deal to renew its Canadian sponsorship agreement with the NHL in November, but that the league then turned around and signed a North America-wide contract with Molson Coors instead.

Labatt in its court filing stated: “The NHL … in bad faith and in breach of their contractual obligations, went behind Labatt’s back to negotiate an agreement with the Molson Coors Respondents for the rights Labatt has held for almost 13 years.”

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly in a statement said: “We intend to defend against Labatt’s claim vigorously and we are confident that our position ultimately will be fully vindicated by the court.”