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UFC’s dramatic move to abandon its longstanding pay-per-view model in the U.S. media-rights deal with CBS Sports parent Paramount was less about a philosophical shift than it was about working closely with a network partner.
As UFC parent company TKO Group Holdings struck a seven-year, $7.7 billion rights deal with Paramount, UFC president Dana White tells Front Office Sports that he and TKO officials discussed a variety of potential deals with network suitors that both included and omitted a PPV model.
“Wherever I do a deal, my goal is to build businesses, mine and theirs,” White says. “In the past, we helped build Spike TV, we helped build Fox Sports 1, and we helped build ESPN+. Now we’re doing the same with Paramount Skydance, and this is how we’re doing it.”
Ultimately, though, White acknowledges that shifting away from the PPV structure beginning next year will expose UFC to far more potential fans. In the current ESPN+ deal, UFC numbered events are an add-on option at $79.99 per event. In the new deal, all the numbered events and Fight Nights will be available on Paramount+, with “select” simulcasts on the numbered events appearing on the CBS broadcast network. A Paramount+ premium plan that includes live streaming costs $12.99 per month.
“It’s going to be huge, and we’re incredibly pumped about being in business with Paramount, the history of the company, and working with [Paramount chair and CEO] David Ellison,” White says. “We intend to be a big part of their global aspirations.”
A specific number of linear simulcasts has not been finalized, but White says, “We’ll be ready to go whenever CBS and Paramount want to.”
Market Reaction
Furthering momentum from initial Monday trading, TKO shares surged more than 10% for the day, ending the session at $180 per share and nearing a company high. The newly formed Paramount Skydance, conversely, fell nearly 4% as analysts are still looking to sort out the long-term meaning of the deal for the company.
“For TKO, the most important thing is that the numbered fights are no longer behind an expensive paywall. As we’ve said numerous times, the UFC’s PPV price point was way too high. In turn, not enough people were exposed to UFC’s best content,” wrote LightShed Partners in a research note.
“Licensing UFC is the second bold content move in the past week for the new Paramount Skydance team, following the decision to shift South Park from HBO Max to Paramount+. Whether or not these are standalone accretive investments is TBD. However, they clearly signal how long-term and big team Ellison is thinking. … They are trying to create a long-term imprint on the future of the media industry to win,’” LightShed wrote.
White House Fights
Meanwhile, White says a much-discussed plan to stage a UFC event on the White House grounds next July is “definitely happening.” The high-profile fight card will be held in conjunction with celebrations of the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, and White said the event will likely be shown on CBS. The developing effort is in part an outgrowth of the close relationship between White and U.S. President Donald Trump.
“I feel really good about how that’s progressing,” White says. “We’re actually heading [to Washington] at the end of August for meetings about it. Ivanka [Trump, the president’s daughter] is also involved in this. We’ll be making a presentation and then will look to hear back about what they like about it and don’t like.”
