Will the UFC Follow WWE and Move to Netflix?
With WWE striking a groundbreaking deal to move its flagship show Monday Night Raw to Netflix in 2025, speculation has grown about whether the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) could soon follow suit. The shift toward streaming platforms has reshaped the sports and entertainment landscape, and UFC fans are wondering whether Netflix might be the next home for live mixed martial arts events.
Currently, the UFC has a lucrative broadcasting agreement with ESPN in the United States. The deal, worth over a billion dollars, runs until 2025 and grants ESPN exclusive rights to air UFC Fight Nights and pay-per-view events through ESPN+. This arrangement has boosted ESPN’s streaming numbers and provided consistent global exposure for the UFC. However, with the contract nearing its end and Netflix actively expanding into live sports and combat entertainment, the possibility of UFC negotiating with Netflix cannot be ignored.
Netflix has already shown a growing appetite for sports content, airing live golf events, tennis showcases and now the WWE Raw package. The company is looking to capture the massive audience that watches live sports on cable. From a business standpoint, bringing the UFC to Netflix would give the streaming giant access to a younger demographic that follows fight sports closely. For the UFC, partnering with a global platform like Netflix could offer even wider international reach given Netflix’s presence in over 190 countries.
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There are key hurdles, though. The UFC has relied heavily on a pay-per-view model that delivers major revenue during blockbuster events. Netflix so far operates on a subscription-only basis without traditional pay-per-view. Adapting the UFC product to a Netflix structure would require a new monetization strategy that maintains profitability. Additionally, ESPN may seek to extend its partnership and offer even better terms to keep UFC content exclusive.
While there is no official indication that UFC will follow WWE to Netflix, the evolving broadcasting environment makes it a real possibility in the coming years. If Netflix continues investing in live sports and proves successful with WWE content, the UFC may be tempted to explore a similar future streaming home when its current ESPN deal expires.
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