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The UFC's seven-year broadcast deal with ESPN is coming to a close. For 2025, the promotion is determined for an even bigger and better deal. Mark Shapiro, the president and COO of UFC parent company TKO Group Holdings, addressed their broadcast future at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference.
The conference took place in a live session on TKO's investor relations website and will be available for 30 days. However, a report on the encounter by MMA Fighting provided details on the promotion's broadcast plans going forward, with 2025 slated to be an even more lucrative year.
He highlighted the difference between MMA and other sports leagues, which usually take place during a season before going on a break. This isn't the case with either one of TKO's organizations.
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"You [look at] the UFC and what do you have there? You have a year-round property. Year-round, there's no breaks. It's happening every single weekend. WWE, by the way, the same thing, but just on the UFC side that's what you have. That's a real antidote for churn. We're also the owner and the commissioner, throw the coach in there, too."
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This differentiates TKO's properties from the likes of the NFL, which operates under a seasonal format. MMA is a completely different sport, with the only promotion following a seasonal trend being the PFL, which has faced numerous struggles as of late.
Prominent fighters like Patricio 'Pitbull' Freire have expressed their discontent with their inactivity, even proclaiming his interest in exploring a new path in a different promotion.
The UFC had a previous partnership with ESPN
The promotion's partnership with ESPN has led to a lucrative deal, which initially earned it $609 million. However, its subsequent five-year deal led to the promotion pocketing $1.5 billion, which enabled it to reach a level of mainstream coverage that once thought unthinkable for MMA as a sport.
Unfortunately, the partnership with ESPN hasn't been without its downs. The ESPN+ app has often been criticized by fans for its instability, which has prevented uninterrupted viewing of pay-per-views, which has become a rising issue among sports live streaming services.
