Grand Slam of Curling: New CEO makes an early impression on the race track

Change is in the air at the Grand Slam of Curling series, and Curling Group CEO Nic Sulsky is the face of the circuit’s new ownership group.

After the season opener of the HearingLife Tour Challenge, the first returns are lined up, and one thing is clear: this is no longer your parents’ curling scene.

“The sport needs a sponsor,” said Sulsky. “The sport needs someone to help tell stories and energize, and ultimately that’s part of my job. So yeah, join in, man. I’m going to Dana White (that thing).”

Sulsky, who concluded his quote with an F-bomb and a laugh, was referring to the UFC boss, a sometimes brash CEO who likes to say it and is definitely not the traditional sports executive.

Mixed martial arts and curling couldn’t be more opposite. The former is a primitive, violent exhibition of fighters fighting in a cage, while the latter is a polite competition described as chess on ice.

But the popular world of curling can learn from the UFC’s playbook. The MMA giant has become a powerhouse by creating a product that meets many needs for today’s sports fan.

And the Roaring Game is far behind.

Sulsky and his team want to change that and have made some big strides in Charlottetown. They introduced a new GSOC website, a new app, a new podcast and perhaps the biggest change of all: they made live streaming of all games available.

“Honestly, we’ve talked a lot over the last six months,” Sulsky said in a recent interview. “We delivered. I think for the first time in a long time, the curlers heard that a new group was coming with these big ideas, and what we said (we would do) actually happened.”

Sulsky, 49, got a taste of the curling experience while serving as chief commercial officer of PointsBet Canada, which became Curling Canada’s sports betting partner in 2021.

He was involved in the PointsBet Invitational competition and was present at the 2023 National Men’s Curling Championship in London, Ontario. The Brier experience — with the fan base, the tradition, the athletes and the party barn in Patch — really got him thinking about the sport’s potential.

“He believes in the players, the brand and the opportunity,” said longtime curler Brent Laing. “He’s just full of passion.”

Sulsky went all-in last April when The Curling Group — which includes two-time Olympic gold medalist John Morris, Rumble Gaming co-founder Mike Cotton and former NFL player Jared Allen — bought the series from Sportsnet.

“Won’t some traditional fans embrace everything we do? Secure. But ultimately you have to break a few eggs to make an omelet,” Sulsky said. “Hopefully they’ll love most of the things we do, and I think they do.”

“If they don’t like the odd F-bomb, then I’m sorry. I hope they accept my apology because there will be more of this.”

There were some successes and failures at the Oct. 1-6 bonspiel at the Bell Aliant Center.

Despite some initial problems, HomeTeam Live offered free streaming of all non-televised games (Sportsnet continues to serve as the host broadcaster). It was a big change from previous seasons when there was no coverage at all until the third day of competition.

The “Results, Standings and Draws” section of the website was a bit difficult to navigate and could do with improvements to make it more user-friendly.

However, commentary was available for select streaming games, and viewers had the “Full House experience” of watching multiple games at once. Attendance increased and merchandising options were revised.

Sulsky said there were many lessons learned, but added that the first event “exceeded all expectations.”

“We pushed a lot of changes, we got a lot of feedback, most of it is pretty positive,” he said.

The traditionally staid on-site Grand Slam experience also received a boost with a livelier post-match atmosphere in the Apres Curl music/bar area.

Sulsky raised a few eyebrows one evening when, at the conclusion of a karaoke performance in front of players, fans and sponsors, he stuck out his middle finger, dropped an F-bomb and declared that he “owns this thing.”

He described it as a light, “very playful” interaction because he wasn’t a good singer and wanted to “help raise the energy.”

“If someone is drinking a beer at the Grand Slam of Karaoke and someone happens to drop a few F-bombs, I don’t think they should be too surprised,” he said. “Aren’t some traditional curling fans going to be 100 percent excited about what we’re doing? Perhaps. But now, for the first time ever, these die-hard traditional curling fans can watch every (game).”

“Hopefully these hardcore curling fans have the same goal as me, which is to finally reach the day when curlers no longer have to work second jobs to bring money to the table. I think those are the things that…” “We will help expand the overall audience of curling and bring the population down a little bit, which is a huge positive for the sport.”

Mike Naraine, an associate sports management professor at Brock University, said it’s time to spice up sports with a hard reset as the population ages and ratings/attendance have fallen recently.

“I think this is a major turning point for curling,” Naraine said. “Either it could get really great, or it could get really bad really quickly.”

The streamed games received a total of 566,200 views over the six days, a Curling Group spokesperson said. Sportsnet said television ratings were not available.

“Every slam gets better,” Sulsky said. “We are thrilled and couldn’t have asked for a better foundation for our growth.”

The next stop on the circuit is the Co-op Canadian Open November 5-10 in Nisku, Alta.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 18, 2024.