Edmonton Oilers games are known for many things: Connor McDavid, enthusiastic fans, and large 50/50 pots.
The Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation (EOCF) has paid a subsidiary company over $81 million from 2021 to 2024, according to a new report. The Oilers organization has also responded to the report with its own statement.
How the Oilers’ 50/50 Operates
The Investigative Journalism Foundation released an investigative report on their findings of the EOCF’s 50/50 draws. This report is comprehensive and provides numerous data points to review.
Oilers Entertainment Group contracts costs related to running the raffle to a subsidiary named “Win50.” According to the report, “Win50 is responsible for all costs related to running the raffle, including additional prizes, television and radio commercials, promotion and advertising, the raffle technology platform and many other expenses totalling millions.”
“However, the foundation’s audited statements do not provide a breakdown of exactly how Win50 spends its money.”
According to the 50/50 FAQ on the Oilers website, “50/50 beneficiaries receive a percentage of the net raffle proceeds. The percentage is determined on a raffle-by-raffle basis, which can add up to hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars depending on the jackpot amounts.”
The FAQ also states, “50/50 beneficiaries also benefit from exposure of their organization and clients through Oilers TV and radio broadcasts and digital and social media platforms reaching millions of fans and others per game across Alberta and beyond. This provides incredible earned media value and opportunity for the beneficiaries to tell their story and the stories of their clients, and to bolster their own fundraising efforts through association with the Oilers brand.”
How Much Money Has Gone to Charity? How Much to Win50?
IJF’s report reveals some concerning figures. For starters, less than 20 percent of all ticket sales during the 2024 Stanley Cup run went to charities.
“The Oilers’ 2024 Stanley Cup run drove 50/50 ticket sales to over $102 million, nearly double that of 2023,” the report states. “After the jackpots were awarded, and fees and administrative costs were subtracted, $20 million, just under 20 per cent of ticket sales, was available to go to a charitable cause.”
But how much money went to Win50, you ask?
“Fees paid to Win50 for the 50/50 raffles, which the foundation reports as ‘licence and rights fees,’ were $28 million in 2024,” the report states. That means Win50 received eight million dollars more than the charities did in 2024.
The number becomes even more staggering when you include numbers from 2021.
“Between 2021 and 2024, the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation (EOCF), the charity that runs the 50/50 raffles, paid more than $81 million to OEG’s subsidiary Win50,” IJF reports. It claims this is for “licence and rights fees.”
Oilers Respond to IJF Report
The Oilers released their own statement later in the day.
“Recent reporting by the Investigative Journalism Foundation fundamentally misleads readers in its representation of the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation’s 50/50 program,” the statement reads. “By focusing on percentages rather than the unprecedented charitable impact being delivered to Alberta communities.”
Their statement reveals the amount of money allocated to charities from 2021 to 2024.
“2021-2024: $66.9 million to charitable causes.”
That’s a difference of approximately $14 million. EOCF has given $14 million more to Win50 than to charities over the same four-year span.
Who is in Charge of Win50?
According to Charity Intelligence Canada, Win50 is controlled by “the shareholder of the Edmonton Oilers Hockey Club.”