Houston Mayor John Whitmire Details Population 'Great' for NHL Team
The Colorado Avalanche could be seeing another division rival come the 2029-30 season, with it appearing that Houston is making major progress toward becoming the NHL's 33rd franchise.
The Central Division currently consists of Colorado, in addition to the Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Utah Mammoth, St. Louis Blues, Nashville Predators, Winnipeg Jets and Chicago Blackhawks.
However, the NHL and League Commissioner Gary Bettman announced following a June 23 Board of Governors meeting that a six-month process is actively ongoing to analyze the possibility of expanding to either Houston or Austin, Texas, which is being backed by a $3.5 billion investment made by Dan Friedkin.
Friedkin is the CEO of The Friedkin Group and owner of Italian soccer club AS Roma and Everton in the English Premier League, with his investment reportedly including the expansion fee that goes to the NHL and the cost of building a new arena.
That six-month evaluation process is supposed to come to a conclusion in or by Dec., with a major factor being the fact that a new arena for either Houston or Austin is a requirement for whichever city is awarded the franchise.
Houston Mayor John Whitmire knows that sports are successful (such as Houston's pre-existing NFL, MLB, NBA, MLS and NWSL team in addition to the WNBA returning in 2027) in his major Texas city, and now Mayor Whitmire is officially ready to assist in taking the next step — helping bring the NHL to Houston.
Mayor Whitmire would specifically detail that Houston's metro population of around 7.8 million — the fifth-most populous metro area in the United States — gives it a leg up over Austin.
"I care about Houston, and I know we're a can-do city. And I think we're ready," Mayor Whitmire said in an exclusive. "I think Houston would be good for hockey with our international reputation, our diversity. We already have neighborhood hockey clubs ... [and] I know a lot of Houstonians have migrated to Houston from cities that enjoy hockey."
The Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas Metro Area population only comes in at around 2.5 million.
Houston's Population Provides Key Advantage Over Austin in NHL Expansion Battle
Houston is also the No. 6 media market, compared to Austin which comes in at No. 32.
Mayor Whitmire and his office regularly support professional sports across the city, with Mayor Whitmire previously providing 10,000 free tickets to 2026 matches for the Houston Dynamo (MLS) and Houston Dash (NWSL).
He would go on to state that it is important for the NHL to consider that Houston residents have already proved that professional sports can be successful across the city.
"Houston is a sports city," Mayor Whitmire also said. "There's a lot of people that have moved here from other cities that are huge hockey fans. If it's great for the city, I get pretty excited. I feed off other people. If the fans are excited and the atmosphere and arena are exciting, hell, I'm excited."
EXCLUSIVE — Houston Mayor John Whitmire is officially backing bringing the NHL to Houston over Austin.
— Jennifer Streeter (@JennyStreeter3) August 31, 2026
I sat down with Mayor Whitmire this late afternoon, here's what I learned.
"We're ready."#NHLtoHouston | @NHL https://t.co/G93tKwvn3p
Mayor Whitmire would also reveal his office is actively engaged in discussions with relevant parties to the ongoing NHL endeavor related to expansion.
"We're ready. In fact, we're talking to multiple parties that are interested ... So when we get a proposal, if the city can do something to a system, we'll be there. We'll definitely be a better location than Austin," Mayor Whitmire said.
The NHL has been a 32-team league since 2021-22, when the Seattle Kraken made their debut. Houston is expected to be next, with it likely subject to a vote by the Board of Governors in December.
League Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly has also previously gone on record on numerous occasions in stating that the NHL's expectation is that the Houston or Austin team would be playing by the 2029-30 season.
Jennifer Streeter graduated with a B.A. in journalism from Texas A&M and received her Master of Science from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism. At both schools, she focused on an emphasis of sports reporting. A former athlete herself, "Jenny" was a varsity soccer player and comes from a family who participated in NCAA athletics. She has covered hockey since 2023 and is credentialed for the Seattle Kraken, New Jersey Devils and PWHL in addition to having covered the 2026 Frozen Four.