Dana White has spoken out on CBS to give his first thoughts on the UFC’s new seven year, $7.7 billion broadcasting deal with Paramount+ in the United States that will also see the promotion bring an end to their traditional pay-per-view model there.
As with the current ESPN deal, which concludes at the end of this year, the new era for the UFC on will still have 13 numbered events and 30 ‘Fight Night’ shows, but all of them will be available to fans for the price of a Paramount+ subscription, which White sees as a big win for fans of the sport, who at the moment have to shell out $79 per PPV event.
“I love where this is headed,” White said. “I love the idea of being on Paramount+. When you think of these streaming services, live sports is so important because you have to tune in and watch it when it happens.
“If you’re looking at the moves they’re making and the content that they have: they just locked up South Park, they have Yellowstone, MobLand is a big hit, Tulsa King and the list goes on and on. Not only if you’re a UFC fan do you get away from the pay-per-view model, now you’re just paying $12 or $13 a month or whatever it is and you get all this other programming plus all the UFC content.”
One potential concern emerging from the new deal is that the death of the PPV model means that there would appear to be less incentive for the UFC to stack their numbered events with big fights given that they no longer have to convince people to buy them.
Only time will tell how that plays out, but the deal will see a select few events also simultaneously airing on CBS, and White revealed that there are plans in place to have four marquee events over the course of 2026 on the channel.
“It’s looking like we’re going to do four big events,” White said. “We’re talking about doing a fight at the White House next year on the 4th of July — the 250th anniversary of America. So imagine a massive fight on the lawn of the White House on CBS.”
And White stated that he’s as motivated as ever to put on the best fights he possibly can.
“Yeah absolutely. We basically go every Saturday. So when you’re asking about seasons and off time, there is no off time from the UFC. I’m always looking to put on the biggest and best events for the card from the bottom all the way to the top,” White said. “We’re going to do some amazing things over the next several years with Paramount and CBS. I’m always looking to bring in the best talent to put on the greatest fights.”
Some eyebrows have been raised regarding the deal given that the UFC had been rumored to be in talks with the likes of Netflix (301 million subscribers) and Amazon Prime (220 million subscribers), before ultimately settling with Paramount+ (77 million subscribers), but White insists that he’s excited to be partnering up with the company, who appear to have ambitious plans after recently merging with Skydance.
“I like being in business with people that I’m aligned with,” White said. “Their vision for the next five years, I absolutely love it. This is a great deal for us. Not only for us, but our athletes and our fans.”
And White is already in brainstorming mode as he continues to try to take the UFC to the next level in the years to come.
“I love the idea of trying to figure out how to make this bigger — what we launch with on the first event on Paramount,” White said. “All good stuff, all fun. I woke up this morning and said, ‘Today is gonna be a great day.’”
Check out the full interview with White below.
