Will ESPN be priced out of UFC extension after 2025?
Will ESPN be priced out of UFC extension after 2025?
UFC is reportedly looking for as much as $1 billion per year to broadcast its live events in its next deal.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship wants a raise — and a big one at that. Bloomberg was first to report that UFC is reportedly seeking to make as much as $1 billion per year in its next TV deal. UFC’s current broadcast partner ESPN will get the first crack at locking up the mixed martial arts promotion’s events, but if the exclusive negotiating period between the two lapses with no deal being reached, there could be a robust market for UFC rights in the coming months.
Key Details:
- ESPN pays UFC around $450 million annually for regular matches and pay-per-view fights currently.
- The exclusive negotiating period between the two runs from January until April.
- UFC wants to stay in business with ESPN but knows there would be plenty of other suitors for its rights.
If UFC were to secure the $1 billion+ per year that it is currently seeking, it would more than double the amount it currently makes. ESPN pays a total of roughly $450 million per year for two UFC packages: regular matches and pay-per-view events that stream via ESPN+.
The two sides are already talking, and a formal exclusive negotiating period beginning in January will continue through April. Officials from UFC and its parent company TKO Holdings have repeatedly expressed a desire to stick with ESPN, and have also discussed putting some events on ABC to continue growing the sport.
“We started on ESPN seven years ago and had a rocky relationship in the beginning,” UFC CEO Dana White said on Bloomberg TV in November. “But now I couldn’t be happier at ESPN, it’s a great relationship and I wouldn’t mind staying with them.”
There is plenty of precedent for the UFC to split its rights between multiple partners, however. TKO’s other major brand is the WWE, which recently moved its flagship show “WWE Raw” to Netflix while remaining in business with NBCUniversal. The USA Network is the new home for “WWE Smackdown” and Peacock is the current streaming hub for all of the WWE’s premium live events. The organization also airs its developmental promotion “NXT” on The CW channels.
Of course, the biggest player in media rights has been divvying up its broadcast rights for years. The NFL has done so for decades in order to maximize its revenue and broaden its reach, and in its most recent deal, the NBA divided up its national games between three distributors for the first time, seeing its revenue skyrocket in the process.
There would certainly be other interested parties should UFC rights hit the open market. Fox formerly hosted the fighting promotion, and Prime Video has a selection of other combat sports available already. Competition could get stiff fast, and ESPN might be wise to back up the Brinks truck during its exclusive negotiating window to keep UFC in the fold.
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