The UFC’s take care of ESPN is up in 2025 and whereas there’s nonetheless over a 12 months till then, the hypothesis has begun.
Lower than at some point after the NBA introduced an 11-year take care of Disney, NBC, and Amazon Prime valued at roughly $76 billion, UFC CEO Dana White mentioned the deal may impression the sphere for the UFC.
“It’s going to rely how all these different rights play out,” White advised CNBC on Thursday. “The NBA was a giant deal. Clearly, this one is enjoying out. ‘Who’s going to get them? Who’s not going to get them?’ It may decide the place we find yourself.”
White additionally talked about the chance the UFC may divide content material throughout offers with a number of networks – just like that of the NBA and NFL.
“Our rights deal goes to be a giant deal arising right here,” White mentioned. “Who is aware of? We may find yourself just like the NBA and the NFL the place we find yourself on a number of channels as a substitute of only one. … It’s all shifting and altering so shortly.
“Yeah, I may positively see (the UFC on a number of networks). … We’ve lots of totally different ranges of fights, whether or not it’s Contender Collection, Struggle Nights or pay-per-views. They may find yourself on a number of platforms.”
When requested if negotiations already had begun, White denied with a smile.
“They haven’t essentially begun but, however there’s lots of curiosity and lots of people on the market kicking the tires,” White mentioned.
Whatever the UFC’s subsequent transfer, sports activities streaming rights are large enterprise. White indicated he expects the panorama to shrink and consolidate within the coming years.
“It’s attention-grabbing. Sports activities rights are via the roof proper now,” White mentioned. “I’ve this philosophy. After I grew up, you had Channel 3, Channel 5, Channel 8, and Channel 13. I feel that’s going to be the identical globally over the following a number of years, and also you don’t know who the gamers are going to be, who’re going to be the majors. Will it’s Disney? Will it’s YouTube? Will it’s Amazon? Who is aware of.”
In 2018, the UFC and ESPN signed a five-year, $1.5 billion deal for home broadcast rights starting in 2019. In early 2019, they prolonged the deal two years and added pay-per-view streaming rights. Previous to the ESPN period, UFC was on FOX for seven years (although pay-per-view broadcasts have been traditonal) from 2012 via 2018.
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