UFC Announces That ESPN+ Will Be Exclusive Provider for PPVs in U.S.

UFC and ESPN announced today that ESPN+ will now be the exclusive provider of UFC PPVs in the United States through 2025. This means that ESPN+ will now be the single point of purchase for UFC PPVs in the United States, starting with UFC 236: Holloway vs. Poirier 2 on April 13th. The preliminary cards will remain on ESPN broadcasts with the option to purchase the main card via ESPN+.

This will be a new business model for ESPN+. New ESPN+ subscribers will get one-year of ESPN+ and a UFC PPV event for $79.99. Existing ESPN+ subscribers will be able to purchase UFC PPV events for $59.99 per event.

This is a pretty bold move by UFC which cuts cable and satellite providers completely out of their PPVs.

“With the addition of UFC PPV events, we are making ESPN+ an absolute must-have for any fan of the UFC and mixed martial arts,” said Kevin Mayer, Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer & International, The Walt Disney Company. “In less than a year, ESPN+ has established itself as the leader in direct-to-consumer sports and this new programming agreement adds a significant business to our platform while reinforcing the value and strength of our product and our content lineup.”

“Today’s announcement further establishes the strength of the partnership between UFC and ESPN,” said UFC President Dana White. “Now our fans will be able to watch all UFC events exclusively on ESPN platforms, including ESPN+, which is an innovative way to deliver fights to our young fan base. I couldn’t be more excited to work with ESPN for the next seven years. Together we’re going to do amazing things to help grow this sport.”

Jimmy Pitaro, President, ESPN and Co-Chair, Disney Media Networks added: “The extremely successful launch of the UFC on ESPN+ emphatically demonstrated the collective power and scale of ESPN and DTCI, and we couldn’t be more excited to continue to drive passionate fans to these new pay per view experiences.”