UFC goes mainstream, agrees to $7.7 billion exclusive media rights deal with Paramount.

Breaking news hits this morning as the UFC has finally found its next broadcast partner. UFC has agreed to a 7-year, $7.7 billion deal with Paramount/CBS

This deal comes as a shock to most, as it was reported throughout the year that the most likely candidates would be ESPN, Netflix, and Amazon. It’s a huge win for not only the UFC, making 1.1 BILLION per year for the next seven years, but also a huge win for the fans, as this makes MMA much more accessible to the consumers.

The biggest piece of this deal is the death of the pay-per-view model. Fans across the U.S. will have access to all UFC events for either $7.99 with ads or the $12.99 premium subscription that excludes ads. Some events will be shown on CBS as well, which most likely will be the numbered cards that used to be behind a pay wall. The sports become infinitely easier to watch for viewers around the country as they won’t have to pay an extra $80 a month to watch the biggest fight cards of the year.

Another piece of this that could change the sport is how it affects fighter pay, now that the UFC will be pulling in 1.1 billion per year instead of $550 million. This could potentially open the door for fighters of all calibers to be paid more and be able to make MMA their only job. It's known that fighters who haven’t made their way up the rankings aren’t on the biggest of contracts, so with the UFC bringing in more than double its current revenue starting in 2026, fighters could reap the benefits.

The biggest losers of the deal are the illegal streaming websites, as now the public doesn’t have to go on sites like Streameast, Buffstreams, or any other foreign streaming website to watch fights without paying. So, no more buffering, no more reloading your laptops, now all the fans can enjoy the sport without the concern of any technical issues

Monumental for the UFC, monumental for Paramount, monumental for sports, the UFC is officially mainstream.