UFC news: ESPN acquires the UFC’s broadcasting rights in billion-pound deal
ESPN have won the rights to broadcast UFC fights in the United States.
ESPN have won the UFC's broadcast rights
From January 2019, ESPN and ESPN+ will broadcast 42 live UFC events, 30 of which will feature fight cards in their entirety.
The five-year deal, which will see the UFC retain the rights for their pay-per-view events, is understood to be worth a staggering £1.12billion ($1.5billion).
Prelims for UFC pay-per-view events will be available on ESPN’s linear networks, while the newly-launched ESPN+ service will broadcast 20 exclusive events.
ESPN will pay the UFC an average of £225m ($300m) for its right, which is more than double than their predecessor Fox paid.
Cards broadcast on ESPN will be called ‘UFC on ESPN Fight Night’, while those on ESPN+ will be branded 'UFC on ESPN+ Fight Night'.
UFC president Dana White is delighted to have struck a deal with the American broadcaster, which has seen the promotion take another giant step towards making mixed martial arts a mainstream sport.
“Every year for the last 18 years, we have taken this sport and brand to another level,” he said.
“We find innovative ways to promote our athletes and build stars. Today is another monumental day for UFC, our athletes, and our fans.
ESPN will broadcast 42 UFC events a year from January 2019
“We are now part of the ESPN family, recognized around the world as the pinnacle in sports broadcasting. I am very excited for this next chapter for UFC.”
ESPN’s president and co-chairman Jimmy Pitaro added: “ESPN’s unparalleled multimedia platform is the perfect home for the UFC and will deliver tremendous value to both parties.
“UFC fans are passionate and loyal and we plan to bring the full power of ESPN’s live coverage, powerful storytelling and unmatched distribution to serve them in an unprecedented fashion. We can’t wait to get started.”
The UFC's deal with ESPN is worth a staggering £1.12billion ($1.5billion)
It’s currently unknown what the UFC’s deal with ESPN means for the mixed martial arts fans in the UK.
BT Sport currently own the rights to broadcast UFC fights in the UK, though their deal with mixed martial arts’ premier promotion is up at the end of the year.
Express Sport have reached out to the UFC for comment.