The Edmonton Elks have struck the first Punjabi broadcast rights agreement in CFL history, ensuring that every home game next season will be available on the radio in that language.
The multi-year radio rights agreement with My Radio 580 is part of the Elks’ ongoing strategy of showcasing their brand and Canadian football to new Canadians.
“As a Club, we continue to look for ways to reach new fans who might not be familiar with the Edmonton Elks, or Canadian football. This is a great chance for us to build a love of football by bringing the game to new fans in their language,” vice president of marketing and fan engagement Evan Daum said in a statement.
“We’re thankful My Radio 580 has been so eager to partner with us on engaging the Punjabi community and help showcase how the CFL is a uniquely Canadian experience open to everyone.”
The Elks have made a concerted effort to provide alternative language broadcasts in recent years, also partnering with Windspeaker Media to make the Labour Day rematch available in Blackfoot and Cree.
My Radio 580 made history in 2023 when they broadcast the Elks’ July 29 matchup against the B.C. Lions on the station. Hockey Night in Canada commentators Harpreet Pandher and Taqdeer Thindal made the call on the first-ever Punjabi CFL broadcast, as B.C. won 27-0.
“We’re so excited to be able to bring a more global perspective to the CFL,” station general manager Gursharan Buttar said in a statement. “We have seen the growing desire of all newcomers to understand and connect with the Canadian world of sports, and we look forward to bringing more ethnic representation into mainstream sports coverage.”
Canada has a Punjabi community of almost one million people, approximately 125,000 of whom reside in Alberta. All will now be able to tune into Elks’ home games live on 580 AM on their radio across the province, or online at MyRadio580.com.
The first broadcast will take place May 25 when the Green and Gold host the Saskatchewan Roughriders in preseason action.
