Ultimate Fighting Championship's (UFC) television presence has further expanded after recently signing a deal with Latin America's largest Spanish-speaking media conglomerate, Mexico's Televisa Networks.
The deal includes rights to air UFC content via the popular Canal 5 and Televisa Deportes Network (TDN) in Mexico as well as Golden Channel in Latin America, giving the mixed martial arts (MMA) company access to 20 Spanish-speaking countries. As part of the deal, Televisa Networks will launch a subscription channel featuring UFC content later this year.
"The launch of the UFC Channel is a game-changer for our sport and its fans throughout Latin America," says Jaime Pollack, Vice President, International Development and General Manager - Latin America for Zuffa LLC, the parent company of the UFC. "We are giving millions of fans across the region complete access to all our live events and programming for the first time. The UFC Channel will be 24/7 and that the content is dedicated to show the UFC lifestyle, we are confident that the channel will strengthen the UFC brand and also boost the growth of UFC in the region as it will be completely all in Spanish."
The new UFC Channel will include live fights, highlight shows from their extensive UFC, PRIDE, Strikeforce, and WEC 20,000-hours worth of library, and specialty programming - including a Spanish-language version of "The Ultimate Fighter" (TUF) reality series.
"This channel should be a mix of the best of our library with some creative liberties tossed in. Fans will gravitate to great past events and previews around future fights," said Pollack to LatinosPost.com. "Fans will gravitate to great past events and previews around future fights but it has to have cool and compelling wrinkles."
The UFC currently has programming in more than 145 countries and in 28 different languages including an agreement with Organizações Globo of Brazil, where MMA has taken off. UFC has held pay-per-view events in Brazil as well as two seasons of TUF and hope that they can replicate the same success in Mexico. UFC president Dana White has discussed the possibility of adding a ninth weight class - a 115 strawweight division - built around Mexican fighters, and sent scouts in January to take a look at potential talent.
"It is no secret that the UFC has been trying to tap into the Latin American market for a while now and this deal helps them gain an excellent partner to help them put a strong step forward," says Luis Arellano, founder and CEO of Contigo Global Philanthropy, who works with companies to further their mission by integrating a bi-cultural outlook. "I believe that MMA can become as big as boxing in those markets, but it will take some time."
White had expressed a desire to hold a UFC event in Mexico City featuring current UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez as early as this this year, but does not see it as feasible.
"Mexico's taking a lot longer than I thought it would, but it's coming," White told USA TODAY. "The culture in Mexico, they're fighters. The greatest fighters in history come from Mexico, and there's that whole famous Mexican style of fighting - and you see it some of the guys we have here now. It's getting there slower than I thought it was going to, but when it all comes together, it's going to be amazing."
Arellano believes that holding an event in Mexico will be key but that the UFC is making the right moves in the Latin American market, thus far.
"I believe that there are several strategic moves that the sport and UFC can make in order to help popularize it faster, but the potential to be big is there," Arellano told LatinosPost.com. "They are being aggressive, that's for certain. That's just how Dana and the Fertittas [Brothers] are, but they are also being smart. I believe all this is part of the plan."