DAZN has added another niche sports property to its growing portfolio of U.S. rights after reaching a global agreement with 3ICE.
The 3-on-3 hockey league announced today a global agreement with DAZN that will see every game from the 3ICE men’s league stream on DAZN. The agreement also includes the rights to the inaugural 3ICE World Cup, which took place in Belfast on July 4 and 5.
The league was founded by reality television producer E.J. Johnston in 2020. Hockey Hall of Fame coach Craig Patrick serves as commissioner.
3ICE aired its games on CBS Sports Network in 2022 and 2023. The league canceled its 2024 season before moving its games to various regional sports networks in 2025.
DAZN has been courting the United States market in recent years after several failed attempts to gain traction. DAZN held the exclusive rights to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, reached an exclusive agreement with Top Rank Boxing in March 2026, and purchased the U.S. direct-to-consumer platform ViewLift in April 2026.
Before these moves, DAZN had failed at acquiring sports programming of interest to Americans. DAZN briefly streamed the Pat McAfee Show from 2019 to 2020 and also briefly held the rights to an MLB whiparound show before the 2020 season.
3ICE is certainly not a marquee league, but hockey remains popular among American audiences. At least five former NHL players are playing in the league this season.
These moves are a good start, but DAZN will likely need to acquire more marquee sports rights, such as local NBA or NHL rights, before it can truly call itself a major player in the American market.
About Manny Soloway
Manny Soloway is a Iowa based writer focusing on TV ratings. He is also the founder of the TV Media Blog substack.