UFC inks exclusive deal with Reebok, uniform program to roll out July 2015

Quote :

The UFC announced on Tuesday the finalization of a landmark six-year partnership with Reebok, a deal which could dramatically shift the role of sponsorships in mixed martial arts. Beginning the week of July 6, 2015, the UFC will institute a sweeping new uniform program which will effectively replace all in-cage fighter sponsorships with kits produced exclusively by Reebok.

"We look at this as Reebok and the UFC are essentially changing the sports landscape once again," said UFC CEO and co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta. "This clearly has never been done in combat sports. Reebok will be the exclusive worldwide outfitter of the UFC, and as part of this deal and this partnership, this will be the biggest non-broadcast partnership that our company has ever signed, so it is significant.

"We're continuing to do things and implement things to elevate the level of the sport, and really take it in a place where other major sports leagues are. So the way that this outfitting policy will work is that it will allow for each of the fighters' individuality, but also will provide a unique, iconic and consistent look for all the athletes, obviously very different from where the sport has been in the past, where it is essentially, for lack of a better word, a bit of a mish-mash with various different sponsors, different looks, brands, and styles."

Fertitta elected not to disclose the value of the deal, repeating only that it was the "largest deal we've ever signed" outside of broadcast deals.

Participation in the new uniform policy will be mandatory for every fighter under UFC contract.

continued...

i wonder whos getting fucked on this deal.
is this a advantage or a disadvantage for big money fighters
how will this impact the low tier fighters?
how will this impact the quality of fights since fighters will be sponsered by rankings?
how will mma clothing lines hold up without the exposure?
will this have any impact on fighters leaving ufc and going to different orgs?
a lot of unknowns here.

drainbamage wrote:

i wonder whos getting fucked on this deal.
is this a advantage or a disadvantage for big money fighters
how will this impact the low tier fighters?
how will this impact the quality of fights since fighters will be sponsered by rankings?
how will mma clothing lines hold up without the exposure?
will this have any impact on fighters leaving ufc and going to different orgs?
a lot of unknowns here.

Every single fighter. It sounds like they will not be able to wear any sponsored clothing or patches into the ring anymore.

Grey Suit wrote:

drainbamage wrote:

i wonder whos getting fucked on this deal.
is this a advantage or a disadvantage for big money fighters
how will this impact the low tier fighters?
how will this impact the quality of fights since fighters will be sponsered by rankings?
how will mma clothing lines hold up without the exposure?
will this have any impact on fighters leaving ufc and going to different orgs?
a lot of unknowns here.

Every single fighter.  It sounds like they will not be able to wear any sponsored clothing or patches into the ring anymore.

opting out of the ufc contract when its up will be much more appealing to these fighters imo. This could be a big game changer for the smaller orgs.

drainbamage wrote:

Grey Suit wrote:

drainbamage wrote:

i wonder whos getting fucked on this deal.
is this a advantage or a disadvantage for big money fighters
how will this impact the low tier fighters?
how will this impact the quality of fights since fighters will be sponsered by rankings?
how will mma clothing lines hold up without the exposure?
will this have any impact on fighters leaving ufc and going to different orgs?
a lot of unknowns here.

Every single fighter.  It sounds like they will not be able to wear any sponsored clothing or patches into the ring anymore.

opting out of the ufc contract when its up will be much more appealing to these fighters imo.  This could be a big game changer for the smaller orgs.

1000% agree. Even more so for the lower level fighters who really dont make a lot on there fights. The sponsors in a lot of cases helps keep there head above water. This could definitely shake things up for future fighters and on what stage they want to fight for. bad move for the UFC.

Gecko wrote:

drainbamage wrote:

Grey Suit wrote:

drainbamage wrote:

i wonder whos getting fucked on this deal.
is this a advantage or a disadvantage for big money fighters
how will this impact the low tier fighters?
how will this impact the quality of fights since fighters will be sponsered by rankings?
how will mma clothing lines hold up without the exposure?
will this have any impact on fighters leaving ufc and going to different orgs?
a lot of unknowns here.

Every single fighter.  It sounds like they will not be able to wear any sponsored clothing or patches into the ring anymore.

opting out of the ufc contract when its up will be much more appealing to these fighters imo.  This could be a big game changer for the smaller orgs.

1000% agree. Even more so for the lower level fighters who really dont make a lot on there fights. The sponsors in a lot of cases helps keep there head above water. This could definitely shake things up for future fighters and on what stage they want to fight for. bad move for the UFC.

yeah, i remember uncle creepy went on the ug and stated that if he wasnt recieving 5k per month from his sponsers he wouldnt be able to survive. creepy isnt a low tier fighter either. this will for sure cause waves..

From what I've heard, this will actually be beneficial to the lower-tier fighters, as the cut they will be receiving will be significantly higher than what they currently get from their respective small time sponsors. The upper tier fighters will probably take a hit though, as they get paid prime $$$ from their current sponsors.

IDK, could definitely go either way. I have been reading that it will be better for the lower tiered guys... ie more $$ from Reebok than from say Condom Depot... I get that. But will the $ from Reebok be more than the $ formerly being generated from say Condom Depot, Dynamic Fastener, MMA Warehouse, Alienware, Dethrone, & Bass Proshop all together?

Not likely.

Chrom wrote:

IDK, could definitely go either way. I have been reading that it will be better for the lower tiered guys... ie more $$ from Reebok than from say Condom Depot... I get that. But will the $ from Reebok be more than the $ formerly being generated from say Condom Depot, Dynamic Fastener, MMA Warehouse, Alienware, Dethrone, & Bass Proshop all together?

Not likely.

That's my question as well. It's not just the logos on a guys shorts he get paid for its the logos on his banner and on the shirt, hat, energy drink and ear phones that he puts on after the fight as well. It basically went from a capitalist system to a socialistic one. What is really a killer is that it takes all of the negotiations and opportunities out of the fighters hands.

Yeah, concerning the negotiating aspect; I've been reading a lot of stuff out there that points to the fact that this kind of minimizes the need for fighter managers, as they won't be needed to negotiate sponsorship deals. And a lot of people seem to think that was one of the major reasons the UFC did this.
Given how Dana seems to feel about most managers, I wouldn't be surprised if he was attempting to make them as obsolete as possible.

wonder if this had anything to do with the possibly staged jones cormier media scuffle that lost jones his contract with nike

does the reebok deal also make advertising in the octagon obsolete? or is it just for the fighters?

drainbamage wrote:

does the reebok deal also make advertising in the octagon obsolete? or is it just for the fighters?

Quote :

The UFC may still negotiate event sponsors, which would receive key advertisement placement on fighter uniforms during a specific event. White stated the number of event sponsors in such capacity would never exceed one.

http://www.cagepotato.com/ufc-announces-fighter-uniform-deal-with-reebok/

This is the closest answer I could find. I'm guessing this would apply to logos in or around the Octagon, as well.

thanks trigg... thats just insane.. cant wait to see how this plays out.

I just read that the deal is worth 70 mil over 6 years.
Basically, assuming "virtually all" of the $$$ goes to the fighters like Dana said, you take into account the number of events over that 6 years, the number of fighters on the roster, and, without at this point being able to judge what the actual $ amount split will be between the different tiers of fighters, the figure is $10,606 per fight in sponsorship revenue for each fighter, on average.
(here's a link to the article I'm referring to if anyone wants the cold hard numbers
http://www.cagepotato.com/ufc-reebok-uniform-deal-reportedly-worth-70-million-over-six-years/ )

Now, obviously, like I said, we don't know the split yet, so some fighter on the Fight Pass undercard isn't getting Ronda Rousey $$$, but you gotta figure he's gonna get around $3K, which is probably an increase for him.
But it's like I mentioned earlier; it's not the lower tier guys who are taking the hit here. It's the upper echelon fighters who currently get huge sponsorship deals from a few different companies. But honestly, it probably doesn't hurt them as much as it helps the little guys, so I really don't think this is a bad idea at all, assuming Dana stays true to his word that "virtually all of the money" goes to the fighters.