ESPN To Become Exclusive Home to UFC in 2019

ESPN has decided to take over the entire UFC television rights starting in 2019.

As first reported by Variety, ESPN and the UFC have come to an agreement on a five year deal worth $1.5 billion for the Disney owned company to become the exclusive home of the mixed martial arts promotion starting next year.

ESPN had previously brokered a deal with the UFC for 15 live events for $750 million per year but it appears the two sides decided to sit back down at the negotiating table to hammer out an even better contract.

Now ESPN will receive 30 live UFC events per year in total that will be aired between ESPN and ESPN+. The UFC will still maintain their pay-per-view business as well as UFC Fight Pass.

In addition to that, the UFC pay-per-view prelims will air on ESPN or ESPN+.

10 live UFC Fight Night cards will air on ESPN with the other 20 airing on ESPN+.

The new deal that breaks down to an average of $300 million per year will see the UFC leave FOX after first teaming up with the company back in 2011. FOX was paying the UFC around $120 million per year on average so this new contract will more than double that to go to ESPN.

FOX had just reportedly come to an agreement with WWE to become the exclusive home to ‘Smackdown Live’ in 2019 with that deal worth around $1 billion for five years.

The UFC will shift their programming entirely to ESPN in Jan. 2019.