UFC Expands Stake.com Partnership, and Other Sponsorship News

2021 was a big year for the UFC, as majority shareholders Endeavor Group Holdings raised $1.75 billion in an IPO to buy out the rest of the shareholders. Now owning UFC outright, it’s not surprising that Endeavour then went on a sponsorship spree to recoup those costs. 

Luckily, UFC was in good shape to attract a lot of sponsorship deals. The promotions company fared better than most during the pandemic, getting back to business early compared to others in the same sector. They can also offer promotion to their sponsors twelve months a year, since there is no off season for the sport.

UFC have been very busy indeed, signing new sponsorship deals and expanding existing partnerships. Here we take a look at some of the biggest and most interesting current UFC sponsors and partners.

Stake.com

Although it was only founded in 2017, Stake.com has quickly become the largest cryptocurrency sportsbook on the planet. As well as sports betting, the company also offers a safe online casino platform to a global audience. Stake.com first became a UFC partner in March 2021, and the deal was expanded in February 2022. 

The most high-profile part of the deal for Stake.com is the role of presenting sponsor for all pay-per-view events broadcast in Brazil. No information is available on the length of the contract, but the 2022 expansion into Brazil is proof that both parties are happy with the deal. The UFC get a dependable betting partner, and Stake.com receives a wider audience for its sportsbook and secure online casino site. For a trusted source of information regarding the latest safe casino operators, you can check this reputable source.

Stake.com now holds the position of being the official betting partner of the UFC in the Asian and Latin American markets. These are two key regions for the promotion, with a large fanbase in Latin America and a rapidly growing one in Asia. 

Stake.com has positioned UFC at the forefront, offering exclusive promotions for the brand and collaborating on content for social media. A lot of money is staked on MMA fights, so it is important that UFC show responsibility by partnering with safe gambling sites.

TikTok

Proving that they have their finger on the pulse of global trends, UFC partnered with the world’s fastest-growing social media platform in February 2021. The collaboration sees UFC creating livestream content to be shown exclusively on TikTok. This includes interviews with MMA stars and footage from behind the scenes at fights.

TikTok is known to have a younger demographic than a lot of social media platforms, showing that UFC are looking to the future by engaging the next generation of MMA fans. This deal was signed in February 2021, just a couple of months before Enveavor’s IPO. 

DraftKings

At around the same time that UFC was making the deal with Stake.com, a much bigger partnership was made with DraftKings to cover sports betting in the USA and Canada. It was important for UFC to tap into this market since the 2018 Supreme Court ruling that gave individual states the choice to allow legal sports betting. 

Since then, a majority of states have implemented sports betting, and it is already a multi-billion dollar market. A trusted sports betting partner was therefore essential for UFC, so no wonder the deal was reported to be worth a massive $350 million. 

Love Hemp

Although it is starting to become more widespread in sports, MMA was one of the first to consider sponsorship deals with CBD brands. Cannabidiol is an active ingredient in cannabis that is available as a medical aid, and many UFC fighters use it to aid in recovery after a bout. Just a few years ago this would have sounded rather controversial, but since CBD is non-intoxicating it has started to gain wider acceptance as a sports aid. 

Love Hemp is based in the UK, and the five year deal was signed in June 2021. It is a big boost for the relatively new company, which has only been in operation since 2019. Although Love Hemp had already made strides in the UK market, the deal helps the company bring their brand to a wider audience. 

Venum

In April 2021, the six-year partnership between the UFC and Reebok reached its conclusion, and a new deal was signed with Venum. This clothing company may not have the brand recognition that Reebok enjoys, but the apparel it produces is specifically for combat sports. 

It is a shorter deal, just three years, and the value of the sponsorship remains undisclosed. Venum will provide cash to UFC, allowing for a modest pay increase for many of the athletes, as well as covering all apparel requirements for the duration of the sponsorship period. 

The new deal caused a bit of a stir among some of the fighters, since under the terms no athletes can seek individual clothing sponsorship deals.