Heated Rivalry, Off Campus and romance books driving ice hockey boom
Canberra Brave games have attracted new fans who discovered the sport through popular TV shows. (ABC News: Lily Nothling)
As hordes of ice hockey fans stream into Canberra's AIS Arena, groups of women congregate excitedly outside.
Taylor Elfverson said she and her friends were having "a girls' night out".
"I watched a few episodes of that Off Campus [show] and thought, 'let's go see an ice hockey game'," she said.
"I've never seen a game before so I have no idea what I'm in for."
There is no denying ice hockey is hot right now.
The books that inspired the TV shows Heated Rivalry and Off Campus have also surged in popularity. (ABC News: Lily Nothling)
Queer hockey romance series Heated Rivalry became a massive streaming success when it premiered late last year.
Last month, Off Campus — a romantic drama about college hockey players — attracted 36 million viewers in its first 12 days, breaking Amazon Prime's viewership record in the 18-34 female demographic.
Both were adapted from ice hockey romance novels, a subgenre that has developed a devoted fandom, particularly through TikTok.
Off Campus has been an epic hit for Amazon Prime. (Supplied: Prime Video)
'Undeniable' impact
Canberra Brave chief executive Stephen Campbell said the flow-on effect of these shows for the Australian Ice Hockey League was "undeniable".
"I think it's fantastic — it's great for the sport," he said.
"Having any program or novel or subgenre of novels that attracts people to the game, I think is a positive."
Taylor Elfverson and Renee Grant knew little about ice hockey until recently discovering shows such as Off Campus. (ABC News: Lily Nothling)
While women have always been involved in the sport, crowds at games have historically skewed male.
This year, more than 67 per cent of tickets to Canberra Brave games were purchased by women.
Players like Casey Kubara have watched the ice hockey romance frenzy unfold.
"It's kind of taken the sport by storm," he said.
Canberra Brave players Casey Kubara, pictured with Jacob Carey, says the new attention on the sport "is great". (ABC News: Lily Nothling)
He has not watched the TV shows or read the books but said he was happy the genre was shining a light on the sport.
"I'd say [ice hockey] is too aggressive and violent to be romantic," he laughed.
"I get asked about it a lot and all I say is that it's probably not quite like what you see on TV, but the attention is great.
"It's honing in a lot of people's attention that wouldn't even have known that we had ice hockey in Australia."
New fans have led to increased sponsorships for the ice hockey industry. (ABC News: Lily Nothling)
The Canberra Brave, which relocated to the larger 3,000-seat AIS Arena in 2025, has been selling out every game.
It is a similar story across the league.
"We're getting TV deals now with the league just signing with ESPN, all the teams have a bigger social media presence," Kubara said.
"It's bringing more fans and more sponsorships, so the game is really growing across the whole country."
Heated Rivalry became a massive streaming success when it premiered late last year (Supplied: HBO)
'People aren't ashamed'
One of those sponsors is Canberra's dedicated romance bookstore.
"We've got a whole section of our shop that is designed for sports romance — it is a massive part of the romance genre," Astoria Romance & Fantasy Bookstore owner Beth Taylor said.
"Ice hockey is by far the biggest part."
Romance bookstore owner Beth Taylor says her book club has also gained new members. (ABC News: Lily Nothling)
She said the intensity and physicality of the sport translated well into romance.
"[Reading] romance has typically been something we hide … but I think it's coming forward — people aren't ashamed of it, they're proud of it, they're bringing their books to games," she said.
Ms Taylor, who also runs a romance book club, said the group attended its first ice hockey game last year and "fell in love with it".
"A whole bunch of the girls have now bought season tickets for this year,"she said.
"Being there live, it's just the most wonderful atmosphere — it's electric."