UFC parent company TKO’s new combat sports endeavor Zuffa Boxing is expected to land with Paramount CBS.
That’s according to Front Office Sports, who reports that the media conglomerate is in ‘advanced talks’ to sign the new boxing league.
On Monday, Paramount CBS announced they’d signed a $7.7 billion dollar over seven year deal with the UFC to broadcast UFC’s entire slate of live events. That’s 30 Fight Nights and 13 numbered events, now ‘premium live events instead of pay-per-views. Now Paramount CBS head David Ellison is after Zuffa Boxing.
The new entity is run by UFC CEO Dana White and WWE president Nick Khan with financial support from Saudi boxing power broker Turki Alalshikh and SELA, the event management wing of the Saudi Public Investment Fund. The plan is to bring the UFC model to boxing, which requires legal changes to the Muhammad Ali act.
Following a one off event in September where White is co-promoting a Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford superfight, the league is expected to launch sometime in early 2026. According to Alalshikh’s news outlet Ring Magazine, Zuffa Boxing will hold 12 events per year and up to 4 ‘megafights’ annually.
That makes the boxing promotion another year-round sport with no off season, a very appealing thing for a streaming service like Paramount+ seeking stable growth for their platform.
Front Office sports reports that Paramount CBS is the ‘front runner’ to pick up Zuffa Boxing, but until the deal is closed there’s always a chance ESPN or Netflix could step in for part or all of the rights. We wouldn’t be surprised to see media rights split with the 12 regular events going to one platform and the 4 ‘megafights’ being parceled out to the highest bidder, one by one.