MMA
A giant colossus! The UFC made hundreds of billions in 2023, reached a record revenue and can still improve significantly
The UFC is the largest MMA organization in the world. Except for the PFL bosses, who also now own Bellator, no one doubts that. The revenues of the now-legendary brand look accordingly. They were again a record in 2023.
The UFC is the largest MMA organization in the world. Except for the PFL bosses, who also now own Bellator, no one doubts that. The revenues of the now-legendary brand look accordingly. They were again a record in 2023.
The UFC has had another excellent year and is building on it this year, with the tournament of the year coming up – the UFC 300 anniversary gala.
Other than that, there has been one interesting change with the merger of two huge brands under one company. TKO Group Holdings owns not only the UFC, but also WWE, another giant in combat sports.
The biggest MMA organization on the planet then rewrote the records for revenue in 2023. And it did so with great clarity. The full-year financial report shows that management is doing an excellent job.
Compared to 2022, the famous brand recorded a 13 percent increase in revenue. Overall, the organization earned a whopping $1.3 billion last year, or more than $304 billion.
The UFC broke several records
The MMA Fighting website, which summarized the full-year financial report, came up with the information that the UFC improved financially in several areas. First and foremost, revenue from media rights and media content sales rose by $76.2 million.
Another $42.6 million more was earned by the organization for the galas themselves compared to 2022. Revenue from sponsors’ pockets also managed to increase, by just $29.5 million.
In terms of gala revenue, the UFC earned a record $168 million, up 34% from a year ago. Excellent news for the organization for the brand itself, but for fans it meant, among other things, more expensive tickets. Attending the tournament overall doesn’t come cheap at all.
However, sales of media rights and related content account for the largest share of revenue. The UFC’s partnership with ESPN alone brought in $870.6 million to the coffers.
What’s next? The ESPN contract ends in 2025, so negotiations for a new contract will soon be underway. Experts expect that the organization could negotiate much better terms and sell the rights to broadcast tournaments and exclusives for more than double. There is now talk of a sum of around $3 billion, but this is not confirmed information.
Source: MMA Fighting, UFC
