CME Group plans to launch futures contracts based on the NHL (North American Professional Hockey League) team performance index on September 28

The Zhitong Finance App learned that on August 11, the global derivatives market Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group (CME Group) announced that it plans to launch the world's first index ice hockey futures (Hockey Futures) on September 28, but it is yet to be reviewed and approved by regulators. Starting from the 2026-2027 season, the futures contract will track the “CME FutureSports Performance Indexes (FSPI)”, which includes real-time statistics exclusive to the North American Professional Ice Hockey League (NHL), and transform official sports statistics into rules-based benchmark financial indicators.

The index uses a systematic method, and points are distributed through a transparent statistical framework. That is, points are added for the team's positive performance, and points are deducted for negative performance or mistakes. The calculation method conforms to the financial benchmarking principles of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and is supported by open governance and supervision procedures.

According to CME, the newly launched NHL ice hockey futures will be divided into standard contracts (standard-sized) and micro contracts (micro-sized). The value of the former contract is 10 times the value of the underlying CME FSPI NHL index, and the latter contract value is 1/10 of the value of the index. Investors can trade 24 hours a day in real-time on a regulated exchange.

Tim McCourt, CME Global Head of Equities, Foreign Exchange and Alternative Products and Senior Managing Director, said that by launching the first major league futures contract to track the NHL Index, CME is introducing the principles and discipline of regulating the market into companies that need to manage the price risk of professional sports.

He pointed out that financial institutions, businesses and individuals all rely on CME's transparency and infrastructure to hedge against the risks of various types of investable assets. The new ice hockey futures will provide fans, sponsors, broadcasters, third-party venue operators, retailers and catering suppliers with a capital-efficient way to hedge against the commercial risks associated with the performance of various NHL teams.

Steve Byrd, head of partnerships at FutureSports, said that for the first time, market participants and sports ecosystem members will have the opportunity to trade professional financial instruments based on real-time match statistics for each NHL team. The NHL team generated a record $1.53 billion (HK$11.934 billion) in sponsorship revenue during the 24/25 season, and attracted more than 23 million fans last season, setting a record for the highest number of visitors in the league's 108-year history. The market is very interested in such derivatives, and the company is happy to cooperate with exclusive exchange partners CME and NHL to implement the relevant indices.