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+1. This has been going on for a while now - I honestly can't remember the last time SG actually followed their own rules. Imagine giving teams just three days to secure the super early bird price, while those same teams have been waiting nine months to receive their prize money instead of the promised 90 days. At this point, it's pretty obvious that SG is using new entry fees to cover overdue prize money from previous seasons. We've been pretty lenient about this, but yeah... the "give & go" cycle with licenses and prize money is crystal clear. That said, I'm happy to stand corrected if there's any factual explanation that proves otherwise - this is just my take based on my own experience. We've consistently been a top 4 team (prize placement) and the same thing keeps happening over and over again. Of course, I've had some private discussions with SG and have some understanding of the situation. But what really interests me is how you plan to improve this process moving forward so this doesn't keep happening? Wouldn't it make sense to either revise or remove the 90-day payout rule if it's not something you can realistically commit to? And for clarify, This isn't a hate message or an attack - I’m just a tired, disappointed and concerned customer. Looking forward to an answer. SINCERELY Tuukka

Hi everyone, and thank you for raising these valid concerns. For some additional context—especially for those of you newer to SportsGamer (formerly NHLGamer)—we’ve proudly paid out over 300 000 € in prize money since 2015, either directly or through our partners. Taking care of our commitments to the community is something we’ve always taken seriously. That said, we fully acknowledge that in recent times, some payments have been delayed, and in a few cases, significantly longer than we would ever want. We’ve communicated directly with the impacted individuals regarding timelines, but we understand this affects trust across the board. For that, we apologize. Why are payments delayed? The biggest factor relates to discussions with tax authorities regarding the correct license tax rate during the last three years. Here’s the practical impact: Players have been billed at 10%, but tax authorities have collected 24%, and now 25,5% (the VAT was raised in Finland from 24 -> 25,5% in September 2024). This discrepancy has resulted in a significant shortfall in our budget for prize payments and operations. On top of this, the global financial climate has made sponsorships and partnerships harder to secure, adding additional strain on our timelines. What are we doing about it? This situation is not acceptable, and we’re taking steps internally to address it: We’re working towards clearing the backlog of delayed payments. We’re reassessing processes to prevent this from happening again. We’re committed to open communication—even when the news isn’t ideal. It’s important to stress: Every winner will be paid. We’ve never left payments unpaid, and that will not change. We want to be transparent: while we are working hard to resolve the current issues, some delays may continue in the short term. However, it’s important to emphasize that we have always honored our prize commitments, and every player who has earned prize money will be paid—no exceptions. That’s a promise we stand by. On the 90-day rule I hear the suggestion to remove or revise the 90-day payout rule. You’re right—we haven’t consistently met that target recently. But the 90-day commitment remains our goal, and we include it in our rulebook to hold ourselves accountable. Removing it might make things easier for us, but we believe it would only weaken your position as our community. On registration deadlines The Super Early Bird (SEB), Early Bird (EB), and Regular registration phases serve a few key purposes, including: Encourage teams to engage earlier, which helps us plan the season better/earlier. Offer teams better value for committing early. Give our staff time to process registrations and licenses more evenly, rather than scrambling at the last minute. We understand that early deadlines can feel stressful. Our goal is to balance accessibility with sustainability, so the league can continue to grow and provide opportunities for everyone. In closing, we appreciate everyone who has raised concerns—whether here or in private conversations. These discussions help us improve. We ask for your continued patience as we navigate this situation, and we promise to keep communicating openly along the way. Kind regards, Kenneth

Hello Sportsgamer! It seems a bit stressful to close the registration already on March 21st? Further. It also seems in combination of “Super early bird” and “early bird” to be a quick way to get license money to cover the payout of old won prize money? I heard through one person that Tunnel Vision who won ECL Spring in NHL 24 was promised to get their prize money for that tournament on April 14th. And it's nice to be promised something that you have rightfully earned. But aren't you breaking your own rules in connection with this? In your rulebook it says the following (see attached picture): Winnings will be paid within 90 days. Since this is in a rulebook, how do you handle such a thing that there are still missing payments (according to rumors) from a tournament that was settled in NHL 24. And with that said, is the money on the way even for those who won ECL Winter this year? I'm just curious how you handle such matters, and why it became so stressful with a very short sign-up period? Looking forward to an answer. SINCERELY Mattias