Puja Tomar is action (Courtesy: Puja Tomar/Insta)
Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI), the leading sports broadcaster in the Indian subcontinent, has announced the extension of the exclusive broadcast rights for Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka for five years. The terms of the agreement include exclusive television and digital media rights for a wide range of UFC events through 2028.
The premier promotion for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) worldwide, UFC caters to a massive global audience. UFC is renowned for its top-class fights along with talented fighters and is a dream platform for fighters across the world to showcase their MMA skills. UFC features many of the world”s greatest fighters, including Israel Adesanya, Leon Edwards, Jon Jones, Islam Makhachev, Sean O”Malley, Alex Pereira, and Alexander Volkanovski. Some of the best up-and-coming fighters in UFC are coming out of Eurasia, which has a rapidly expanding fan base for the sport. And with the UFC roster inclusion of Anshul Jubli, the first fighter from India to receive win a UFC contract via winning the tournament for Asia”s best MMA prospects, ROAD TO UFC, and Puja Tomar, the first India-born female fighter, the timing could not have been better to make headway in the Indian subcontinent.
“We are delighted to extend our partnership with UFC for five more years. Sony Sports Network is the go-to destination for MMA fans in the Indian subcontinent. We have also seen the inclusion of “The King of Lions” aka Anshul Jubli along with Puja Tomar in 2023 has raised interest for UFC in India. Our partnership extension with UFC allows us to continue the exclusive coverage of live UFC events in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu along with an expansive portfolio programming to engage our viewers,” Rajesh Kaul, Chief Revenue Officer – Distribution & International Business and Head – Sports Business, Sony Pictures Networks India said.
Effective January 1, 2024, the agreement solidifies SPNI’s commitment to delivering premium UFC content to fans across the region on Sony Sports Network and SonyLiv. The comprehensive rights package includes exclusive coverage of 42 UFC LIVE events, encompassing 12 Pay-Per-View (PPV) and 30 Fight Night events each year featuring both Main Card and Preliminary bouts, along with additional content that includes UFC Countdown, UFC Connected, a variety of archive content, and Dana White”s Contender Series, a 10-episode live fight series which features up-and-coming talent trying to secure a contract with UFC .
In addition to live events, Sony Sports Network will continue to broadcast live in Asia prime time the ground-breaking “win and advance” tournament for Asia”s top MMA prospects, ROAD TO UFC. Sony Sports Network will also have access to archive content that will further enable them to engage audiences with the rich history of the sport.
