The martial arts industry, which spans mixed martial arts, boxing, and professional wrestling, is a hugely profitable industry that generates billions of dollars annually. There’s a reason it’s called a prize fight. But how do industry heavyweights compare financially between promotions like ONE Championship, Ultimate Fighting Championship, World Wrestling Entertainment, and Matchroom Boxing? Forbes has announced the most valuable martial arts promotions of 2024. The gist of it is:
ONE’s rapid growth continues
Valued at $1.3 billion and estimated revenue of $140 million, ONE reached new heights when it held its first card in the United States. While maintaining a top-level MMA roster, ONE’s dedication to Muay Thai, kickboxing, and submission grappling is ONE’s greatest strength. With the support of Amazon Prime and Sky Sports, ONE has expanded its service to over 190 countries.
UFC maintains top spot, other leagues advance into top 10
Since 1993, the UFC has steadily grown into the world’s largest fight promotion, and we have the numbers to prove it. The UFC, which secured the top spot with a staggering value of $11.3 billion, cashed out in 2023 with an estimated revenue of $1.29 billion. Several decisions over the past decade have transformed the UFC’s image as a violent alternative to boxing into the premier organization for combat. “People always ask me what I do,” UFC President Dana White told reporters at the UFC 300 post-fight press conference. “I make a living selling sacred moments.”
From its partnership with ESPN to its merger with WWE last year, the UFC has had a stranglehold on the industry.
PFL movement
Despite the UFC’s dominance over MMA, that hasn’t stopped competitors like the Professional Fighters League, which finished in sixth place, from challenging for the title. According to the article, PFL was ranked as the second youngest company on the list with a structure similar to football, baseball, and basketball, with a regular season, playoffs, and a championship awarded at the end of the season. That’s what it means.
Combate Global came in at number 10 despite not yet gaining much traction in the English-speaking world due to a number of factors, including confusion over which cards would be broadcast live and which cards would be broadcast on tape delay.
boxing pack lighter punch
After more than a century of dominance, surprisingly only one boxing organization made it into the top five this year. Matchroom Boxing, the prominent boxing promotion run by father-son duo Barry Hearn and Eddie Hearn, will round out the list by the end of 2023 with estimated revenues of $134 million and a valuation of $850 million. Ta.
The UK-based company has one of the most complete stables in the sport, with stars such as Dmitry Bivol, Katie Taylor and Alicia Baumgardner. Matchroom Boxing has seen one of its most acclaimed fighters this year, former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, score a significant win with his KO of Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia. Hearns’ rise has seen Matchroom replace Top Rank, Premier Boxing Champions and Golden Boy at the pinnacle of the sport, with several high-key fighters like Jaron Ennis and Deontay Wilder landing multi-million dollar bouts. I transferred in hopes of acquiring him. .
Welcome to the wide world of professional wrestling
WWE has been leading the wrestling world for decades, and after the success of WrestleMania 40 earlier this month, it doesn’t look like that’s going to change anytime soon. But with millions of fans tuning in every week to Raw, SmackDown, and NXT, the thirst for professional wrestling has grown to the point where competition is expected and appreciated.
While WWE holds the No. 2 spot with estimated revenue of $1.33 billion and value of $6.8 billion, five-year-old All Elite Wrestling, based in Jacksonville, Florida, is building its own momentum. There is. After acquiring Ring of Honor in 2022, AEW established itself as WWE’s premier competition since the turn of the century. The underdog, which boasts stars like Chris Jericho, MJF and The Young Bucks, came in at No. 3 with a value of $2 billion and estimated earnings of $250 million.
