The Ultimate Fighting Champion

The Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC): The evolution of a Sport

1. Should the UFC be marketed as a “sport” or as a “show”? That is, does the company want its events to be perceived as sport? Is the promotion of the events as shows more in line with how the company is running its business?

The question of whether the UFC should be considered a sport or not is somewhat hard  to answer unbiased, I am definitely not a fan of the fights, I see the fights nothing more than testosterone gone mad. A single question in 1993 got Art Davie and Rorion Gracie set out to answer this question by establishing a single elimination tournament featuring eight different fighters. Two athletes would be locked in a caged, octagon shape, ring and no rules, except fro to no biting or eye gouging. Additional rules are required for the UFC meets to be considered a sport, which were later put in place to protect the fighters.  First, we would need to look at the difference of sport vs a show. “Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively” (The English Stack exchange); sports also generally provide a sense of entertainment and amusement. Next would be the consideration other sports bring is the sponsorship many sports have these endorsements unlike the UFC. Major sport leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), National Football League (NFL), and the National Basketball League (NBA) all have heavy sponsorship bases with many large corporations. Currently, UFC only has a few corporate sponsors.

2. How does the UFC use publicity and the chief executive officer (CEO), Dana White, to promote events in new international markets? How will the UFC manage the brand through expansion?

Dana White and the Fertitta brothers, who owned the UFC, did not control their company in the normal way. They had confidence their instincts and ventured on their emotions. Dana White was always making appearances in the media.

They decided to visit new countries, which was a good way to generate new fans. The fans that they pursued were the general sports fan who had been acquaint with to the UFC through the many media outlets. They also had to continue meeting the needs of the current fans.

The UFC as a network had done very well by keeping its fans by using social media such as Facebook. Dana White, the CEO of the UFC, knows the importance of social media better than anyone else does. He says what he wants, worries little about concerns, and his fans like him. The UFC athletes also use social media, which is an effective way to get fan connection. The UFC found a way to involve and motivate its fans in a way other sports and even entertainment brands have not. This idea gives the UFC a huge competitive edge and almost a global domination on the sport itself.

The UFC’s strategy on the international expansion is to first secure some television distribution. One of the first things they did was obtain as much exposure on free TV possible so they could move the brand info different cultures. From there they can move to pay per view and bring in ancillary business like action figures, video games, gyms and live events.

3. How will the UFC continue (1) to develop new talent in the league and (2) to maintain its dominant market position? How will the UFC maintain a competitive advantage against increasing competition?