Following the news that Discovery+ and Eurosport have secured the Ultimate Fighting Championship broadcast rights in the Netherlands and Spain;

Patrick Kinch, Sport Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view:

“These new partnerships with major European broadcasters – Discovery+ in the Netherlands and Eurosport in Spain – signal the beginning of a new chapter for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), as it positions itself as a more mainstream sporting property on European shores.

“The UFC has been growing in popularity since its inception and has exploded in recent years, adopting a more fan friendly, professional image, now broadcasting in more than 170 countries with hundreds of millions of fans. Predominantly based in the US, the sports major partnerships are with domestic broadcasters, with ESPN the main carrier of its US rights until 2025.

“Having established itself in the UK and Italy with broadcasters BT Sport and DAZN, the widening of its European audience with Discovery+ and Eurosport gives the UFC a more popular continental broadcast partner that will normalize the sport in the eyes of fans who may not yet be committed followers of mixed martial arts.

“For the broadcasters, Discovery+ and Eurosport, the partnerships with the UFC are an opportunity to capitalize on the growing popularity of the sport after what was, according to its CEO Dana White, a record-breaking year, with 2021 seeing an estimated eight million pay per view buys.”