Thread: The UFC & ESPN

Excerpt of an interesting article by Sam Caplan of Five Ounces of Pain (now of CBSportsline):


The UFC on ESPN
By Sam Caplan

There’s a term within the sports broadcasting industry called “the ESPN treatment.” The term is a reference to the red carpet treatment the so-called “Worldwide Leader in Sports” devotes to sports conglomerates it has business dealings with.

For example, when the NBA’s television contract was up several years ago there was a push from within the league to sign a deal with ESPN. Believe it or not, the deal was not solely consummated because of money due to a prestige aspect that comes along with being affiliated with ESPN. The prestige element is something that can’t be translated into dollar and cents.

There’s also the belief that when a sports entity jumps into bed with ESPN that the network devotes more attention to it. As such, the ESPN treatment is a treatment that most major sports leagues covet, with some going so far as to offering “The Worldwide Leader in Sports” an ownership stake in their brand.

After all, ESPN can make or break a sport.

Don’t believe me?

Just look at what has happened to the NHL. Does it still even exist? Without formal ties to the network, ESPN devotes token coverage to hockey, at best. When the NHL does garner attention from ESPN, it feels like hockey is only being covered just so Barry Melrose can have a job.

In contrast to the NHL, look at how much more attention ESPN and ESPN.com are devoting to NASCAR these days now that the two juggernauts are doing business again. NASCAR isn’t growing as fast as it had been, and their television ratings were down last year, but watch what happens after NASCAR receives the “ESPN treatment.” Don’t be surprised when NASCAR’s ratings easily best last year’s effort.

In addition to NASCAR, the Arena Football League is another example of a sports entity that has recently signed on with ESPN.

The AFL is an interesting story into itself, having been covered in recent years by NBC in a cashless deal. ESPN will begin broadcasting the indoor football league within the next several weeks, and as a part of the deal, ESPN will take an ownership stake in the league. In return, the AFL will have its games televised in the prestigious Monday Night Football slot which in the past had been reserved for NFL games only. The legitimacy that comes with being affiliated not only with ESPN, but the MNF franchise, is the type of thing alluded to earlier that can’t be measured monetarily. As a part of the “ESPN treatment,” the AFL will have both pre-game and post-game shows broadcast on ESPN -- something NBC never bothered to do.

The AFL made a great deal for itself but there’s no bigger winner than NASCAR.

NASCAR was already getting a lot of coverage but as we touched on earlier, it’s receiving more than ever. In addition to getting a daily show called NASCAR Now, we’re seeing extended NASCAR coverage on SportsCenter, ESPNews, ESPN Radio, and in ESPN the Magazine.

The next sport that could become recipient of the ESPN treatment could be mixed martial arts, and more specifically, the Ultimate Fighting Championships.

Disney, the parent company of ESPN, has forbidden coverage of the UFC and mixed martial arts in the past but its popularity has grown too large to ignore. UFC president Dana White also remains on a quest to legitimize the sport.

Together, White, Frank Fertitta, and Lorenzo Fertitta have implemented various initiatives to bring mixed martial arts to the mainstream; from reality television, to the hiring of former Nevada State Athletic Commission head Marc Ratner, to a likely deal with HBO. The next logical step in the progression is to be covered just like a major sport would be in on the web, in print, and on television. It just so happens that ESPN ranks next in line when it comes to media conglomerates that the UFC must gain acceptance from.

White has been very vocal about meeting with ESPN in an attempt to garner coverage of the UFC on the network’s many platforms. The UFC’s growth in the male 18-36 demographic, which is the most coveted by advertisers, is especially too large to continue to overlook. ESPN executives realize they are losing out on tons of advertising dollars by standing MMA up at the altar. As such, don’t be surprised in the coming months when you see Stuart Scott narrating highlights of Randy Couture’s comeback fight against Tim Sylvia from UFC 68 or John Anderson voicing over clips of Georges St. Pierre and Matt Serra battling for the UFC welterweight title from UFC 69.

It’s clear that the UFC on ESPN is inevitable, but the question remains, just how far will ESPN go when it comes to its affiliation with MMA? Highlights are great but ESPN has a stable of channels, a web site, a radio network, and a magazine that crave constant sports-related content. The UFC’s contract with Spike TV is scheduled to come to an end in mid-2008 with negotiations towards a new deal possibly beginning as early as this summer. The UFC and Spike are happy with each other but business is business and the UFC will definitely listen to all offers. Don’t be shocked when one of those offers is from ESPN.

It’ll be interesting to see how Zuffa (the parent company of the UFC) will conduct upcoming negotiations towards a new television deal. The UFC’s television options in the pre-TUF era were almost non-existent. The company was thrilled when Fox Sports Net indicated a willingness to air an occasional UFC special along with FSN allowing “The Best Damn Sports Show” to feature live UFC bouts every so often. It was also considered a major breakthrough when the UFC was able to sell Spike TV on the concept of The Ultimate Fighter, but at the time, it was the UFC which had to do the whining and dining in order to get a deal consummated. This time around the tables will be turned, so to speak, with the UFC dictating terms to potential suitors. Just four years ago nobody wanted to televise mixed martial arts but Zuffa’s vision has come full circle with a potential bidding war on the horizon. Aside from a major network, there isn’t a potential suitor out there that carries as much prestige as ESPN.

A full-fledged marriage between the UFC and ESPN would be the biggest thing to hit mixed martial arts since… well, it’d be the biggest thing to ever happen to MMA. The summer is a long way off though, leaving one to wonder what a possible deal between the UFC and ESPN might look like. Let’s lake a closer look, starting with the variety of UFC and MMA-related shows that might air on the ESPN family of networks.


The rest of the article is at fiveouncesofpain.com. (I reached the length limit for this thread, sorry.)