Molson Language of Hockey

For the approximately 350,000 people who are new to Canada each year, ice hockey can be a way to forge new ties with their communities and connect them with their new home.​

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But making sense of a fast-paced sport with a language all of its own can be challenging at first. We needed to help new Canadians understand Canada’s sport. Because Molson Canadian has always been on a mission to bring people together over the things we hold dear in Canada – our beer and our ice hockey​

Because ice hockey is more than a sport in Canada; it’s part of Canadian culture, tradition, and identity. Canada sits down every Saturday night at 7pm to watch Hockey Night In Canada, with commentary in Canada’s two official languages, English & French.​

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So as the beer with the country’s name on it, how do you tell millions of new Canadians that they too are welcome to its national sport? You speak to them in their language.​

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Introducing Molson Canadian Hockey Night In Canada – Multilingual Edition. We would broadcast Canada’s game in seven new languages simultaneously and treat new Canadians to the sounds of Canada’s game in the language of their choosing – something never previously done. ​

This initiative had one clear purpose: bring more Canadians into the game by letting them hear it in their language. We chose to create commentaries in Arabic, Cantonese, German, Hindi, Mandarin, Tagalog, and Vietnamese, as these are Canada’s seven most spoken languages (after English and French) in the Canadian cities with an NHL team.​

We invited passionate ice hockey fans from each culture to become the voice of their communities, and updated Hockey Night In Canada’s iconic 60yr old logo with different language versions to make it more inclusive.​

We used Spalk’s Virtual Sportscasting Studio and Talent Marketplace to provide both the required technology and experienced ice hockey commentators from around the globe to help customize the viewing experience for each individual language.​

Saturday April 24th 2021 was the day ice hockey history was made as Canadians from all walks of life heard their beloved game in seven new languages simultaneously. To commemorate the moment, we launched limited edition Multilingual Molson Canadian beer cans in stores, and even created an ice hockey language translator to make the game more accessible.​

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