The UFC is reportedly seeking a bumper payday ahead of negotiations to secure a new broadcast rights deal.
Per reporting by MMA Fighting and Bloomberg, the organisation is pursuing a deal in excess of $1 billion per year for its broadcast rights which are currently held by ESPN — who are expected to hold initial talks with the UFC as part of its exclusive negotiating period which runs until April 15. After that point, further broadcasters are eligible to discuss terms with the UFC — or more specifically, TKO Group Holdings.
ESPN’s current deal runs at around $450 million per year.
“Discussions around our upcoming US domestic rights renewal have not yet begun, and as such we have shared no expectations regarding price,” representatives for the UFC said in a statement published by Bloomberg, as noted by MMA Fighting. “We are in an exclusive negotiating window with ESPN through mid-April 2025, and look forward to productive negotiations when the time comes.”
Per reports, a range of entities have expressed an interest in a UFC broadcast deal including Amazon, Netflix, Warner Bros. Discovery and YouTube in addition to ESPN. It is possible that the rights could be split between different broadcasters, mirroring other deals in American sports leagues.
Speaking last year, TKO president Mark Shapiro elaborated on what the promotion is seeking when it agrees its next broadcasting arrangement.
“We’ll be looking to maximise price and we’ll be looking to also do what’s right for the health of our brand. If that means splitting up the packages or creating new packages, or potentially adding fights and dates, we’re willing to do all of the above.”
