June 18, 2026 — 5:00am
Jessica Harris wore a T-shirt emblazoned with the face of Garrett Graham to attend her first ice hockey game on June 13.
As the protagonist of the very-hot-right-now hockey romance series Off Campus , Graham does not exist. But by attending the sold-out game between the Sydney Bears and Melbourne Mustangs, the recently single Harris was hoping to find his real-life equivalent.
Fictional ice hockey stud Garrett Graham, played by Belmont Cameli, in Off Campus. Prime Video The 26-year-old and her friends decided to buy tickets primarily because they love reading and watching hockey romance.
“We’ve always wanted to come but never got around to it. The show [ Off Campus ] really pushed us to,” says Harris.
Harris and her friends aren’t the only new, and predominantly female, fans.
Hockey romance is having a moment in the cultural zeitgeist. According to Prime Video, Off Campus has become the platform’s No.1 debut series of all time among female viewers aged 18 to 34. The genre doesn’t look to be slowing, with Netflix announcing this week they have green-lit an adaptation of Hannah Grace’s novel Icebreaker .
The Australian Ice Hockey League is trying to capture this rising tide of interest. Melbourne Mustangs, who played and lost to Sydney Bears at the June 13 game, said they have had more sold-out games than ever and noticed more interest from young women.
Mustangs social media manager Alaska Green says their content engagement has been increasing, too. Currently, 60 per cent of their Instagram followers are women.
“Since January to now we’ve gained 9000 TikTok followers … with 2.4 million views across our TikToks. That’s 6½ times the number of views we had in the six months prior and 10 times the number of followers,” says Green.
Mustangs president John Belic says the recent development has provided “crazy numbers and an amazing experience for the club”.
The Sydney Bears warm up on the ice at team training. Janie Barrett The fictional Briar U ice hockey team from Off Campus. Liane Hentscher/Prime
Sydney Bears president Bianca Musico says the phenomenon has created an opportunity to grow the fan base.
“It’s not trend-chasing for us, it’s about recognising what’s happening in culture and meeting fans there,” says Musico.
And it’s working. Musico says they have sold more tickets to home games this year than the entire previous season. According to the Sydney Bears, female ticket purchases for the games are up 35 per cent since Off Campus aired. Total tickets sold are also up 10 per cent, with female attendees constituting the majority. Brands are also jumping on the bandwagon, with Liquid IV, a sponsor of fictional Briar Hawks players in Off Campus , sponsoring the Sydney Bears.
The Sydney Bears ice hockey team prepares for a training session. Janie Barrett “Ice hockey in Australia has traditionally skewed male, so to see women becoming the majority of our audience is incredible. I hope this will translate into more women playing or working in the sport, and increasing attendance across all leagues within the country,” says Musico.
Friends Nicole, 26, and Maddy, 31, bought tickets to the game to see if the hype around hockey men translates from fiction to reality.
“I’m here for the boy aquarium. I want to see them stretching, I want to see them scoring. I’m here for the boys … I’m here to make direct eye contact and find the love of my life,” Nicole says jokingly.
Jessica Harris (left) sporting her Off Campus shirt; Nicole and Maddy in line for merch. Abby Seaman It’s also not just on game night. Some of the players shared that they have been feeling the love from female fans via their Instagram DMs.
Sydney Bears coach and captain Ryan Annesley says it’ll take more than some eye contact and new followers to get the team’s attention. “I think that having a full crowd really motivates them. For the most part they are pretty focused and not looking into the crowd to see who’s there.”
“We are loving the amount of people who are coming,” says Annesley. “All the fanfare based on Off Campus or Heated Rivalry has just been amazing and we are just very thankful for all fans coming out.”
For Sydney Bears player Brett Bamber, who hasn’t watched any of the hockey romance shows, it’s nice to see Australians getting around the sport.
“The more people here at the rink, the better,” says Bamber. “Having everyone here makes us want to win even more.”
When asked who on the team is most likely to start in a hockey romcom, Bamber suggested any of the Aussie players rocking a mullet. “I think [women] love it and I’m trying to grow a mullet myself,” he says.
When asked during intermission how they were enjoying the game, Maddy and Nicole were emphatic. “We are buying merch, so we will be back … We’ve already talked about it, we will clear our schedule,” says Maddy.
“I like the atmosphere. It’s a vibe.”
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Read the full article at The Sydney Morning Herald →
Australia