UFC, Khamzat Chimaev and Dricus Du Plessis
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Paramount CBS was initially set to take half of UFC’s broadcast rights in the form of 30 Fight Night cards. But the deal grew following the closure of a merger between Skydance and Paramount. In 48 hours, an agreement for rights to all of UFC’s events was struck, bucking the assumption that UFC would remain with ESPN or move to Netflix.
However, when the deal does go into effect, all UFC events will be streamed on Paramount+, with a select few even set to air on CBS. White has hinted that Paramount's premium $12.99 subscription will be required to stream UFC fights, though that is a huge price drop from the current cost of PPV events.
Paramount will become the new home to all UFC events in the U.S., while UFC's CEO says the White House may host a July 4 event broadcast on CBS.
The UFC had multiple suitors interested in landing the promotion’s broadcast rights deal, but in the end, Paramount ponied up $7.7 billion per year to land the entire package including the end of traditional pay-per-view broadcasts.
CBS, the first broadcast network to broadcast a live MMA event, could begin showing live UFC events beginning in 2026 with the new media rights deal between UFC parent company TKO Group Holdings and Paramount. Among those potential CBS events is the proposed UFC card on the White House lawn, according to UFC CEO Dana White.
UFC CEO Dana White confirmed plans for a July 4, 2026 fight at the White House to mark America's 250th birthday.
UFC is coming to Paramount+ and CBS in 2026. The company agreed to an astounding seven-year, $7.7 billion contract with the company, Dana White and Paramount announced Monday. Dana White confirmed the move in a post on Instagram, saying it "puts UFC amongst the biggest sports in the world."
TKO Group Holdings announced Monday it signed a UFC media rights deal with Paramount to stream events on Paramount+ with select broadcasts on CBS.
Aaron Pico's long-awaited UFC debut came with the possibility of an immediate title shot with a win. Instead, the former uber prospect and Bellator MMA star was knocked out cold in spectacular and violent fashion at UFC 319 in Chicago .
Ding-dong, the UFC pay-per-view witch is dead. That’s one way of looking at Monday’s big announcement heralding a new broadcast rights deal bringing all UFC content to Paramount+ and CBS at a price tag of $7.7 billion over the course of seven years.