All we get is 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗦𝗛𝗢𝗧. ☝️
64 fighters. Single Elimination Tournament💰🏆
One shot to victory. Move forward in one shot. A shot at the world title#PFL World Tournament
pic.twitter.com/7YlTLgKPAB
— PFL (@PFLMMA)
January 15, 2025
As expected, the Professional Fighters League has ditched the season format in favor of Grand Prix-style tournaments for each weight class.
The promotion announced Wednesday that it will begin its so-called 2025 World Tournament starting in April of this year. The single-elimination bracket will feature eight fighters from eight different weight classes: heavyweight, light heavyweight, middleweight, welterweight, lightweight, featherweight, bantamweight and women’s flyweight. The winner will receive a $500,000 bonus, and the PFL World Tournament will overall “pay out more than $20 million in prize money,” according to the release.
The first round of the tournament begins in April, followed by the semi-finals in June and the final in August. The eight spots and all 64 players will be announced in February. All games will be broadcast on ESPN and ESPN+.
“The PFL World Tournament is a continued innovation by PFL and we are excited to bring even more exciting products to MMA fans around the world,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray. “There is nothing more exciting in any sport than a one-shot, single-elimination game.”
The previous PFL format relied on a points format based on regular season standings to determine who qualified for the postseason. The campaign concluded with a championship finale, with $1 million in prize money paid to the winners in each weight class.
2025 PFL World Tournament Schedule:
1st round
April 3rd
April 11th
April 18th
to be decided
Semi-final
June 12th
June 20th
June 27th
championship
August 1st
August 15th
August 21st
