UFC Just Killed PPV In The U.S. — Here's What It Means For Everyone

Forbes

5 days ago

For the first time since the UFC broke into the mainstream, fans in the United States won't have to shell out money every time a numbered card rolls around.
In 2026, the promotion's seven-year, $7.7 billion media rights deal with Paramount+ and CBS will wipe out the $80 pay-per-view model in favor of a monthly subscription.
Beginning that year, this deal includes every fight — 13 numbered events, 30 Fight Nights, many simulcast on CBS. For now, the cost of that subscription is $12.99 without ads. We've seen Paramount+ and Peacock raise their prices in the past after adding content and acquiring sports rights. It would not shock me to see it rise to $19.99 or even $24.99 in the near future.
That means the era of deciding whether a main event is 'worth the money' is over. For fans, this isn't just a cost change. It's a fundamental shift in how the sport is consumed and how its biggest stars are made and marketed.The Death of $80 PPVs That Are Sometimes Not Worth It
PPV pricing has been a gatekeeper for casual fans for decades.
Hardcore followers like me might pay for every card, but millions of potential viewers sat out unless a fight had crossover appeal. Unless Conor McGregor, Ronda Rousey, Brock Lesnar, or maybe Jon Jones was on the card, the casuals would simply wait to watch the highlights, read a synopsis, or find out the results in passing.
With the barrier gone, Paramount+ could bring back something the UFC hasn't had since the Spike TV era: spontaneous, low-effort discovery.
A bored sports fan flipping through CBS on a Saturday night might stumble into a fight that makes them a regular. The question is whether every card will still feel like an event without the PPV build-up.
That can be addressed with clever marketing and by leveraging something that wasn't as powerful in the Spike TV era: social media. UFC CEO Dana White and the promotion have proven to have a strong handle on this over the past five years.
Plans are likely already in place to compensate for the shift from traditional PPV hype to a steady diet of UFC-related concepts that keep fans engaged.CBS Could Create TUF Moments
Mark Shapiro (TKO COO) said PPV is 'outdated, antiquated."
Based on DAZN's move away from PPV in boxing — spearheaded by Turki Alalshikh, the Saudi boxing power broker who is working with White for TKO Boxing's debut in September with Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford — Shapiro is likely on to something.
There's precedent for this in the UFC.
In 2005, The Ultimate Fighter finale on Spike introduced millions to Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar in a single night. The CBS platform offers that same kind of pop potential, with the bonus of polished production and Paramount's marketing muscle. For fighters, a primetime slot on a free-to-air network is a fast track to recognition and endorsement opportunities.
Fighters should be ready to craft their approaches during pre- and post-fight interviews, knowing the potential audience for every event just got much bigger.Will Fighters Simply Get a Raise or a Bigger Share of Much Bigger Pie?
On paper, this is the richest deal in UFC history. At $1.1 billion a year, it's roughly five times the average annual value of the ESPN deal. But fighter revenue share in the UFC still hovers around 16–20%, according to multiple MMA media reports and antitrust lawsuit filings — well below other major sports leagues.
Will the influx of money lead to better pay, or will it fall into corporate stock boosts and executive bonuses? The larger deal already means more money is available, but the question is whether fighters will see a bigger slice.Will Paramount+ Share Viewership Numbers?
The UFC has long used PPV sales as a negotiating tool. Fighters who could move 500,000+ buys had leverage. Without that metric, the promotion might rely on streaming viewership data — if they choose to share it.
That could work both ways: some stars may find their true audience is bigger than PPV buys suggested, while others may lose the ability to prove their drawing power in hard numbers. The ripple effects on contract talks could be significant.
I'd love to see Paramount+ share their viewership numbers, but that can be a slippery slope in an era when figures are posted online without context.
We'll see.Stars Will Be Made Before the PPV Starts
While the top of the card will always get the headlines, the real winners in this deal might be fighters trying to break through. A Fight Night co-main that once lived behind ESPN+'s paywall will now be one click away for millions of Paramount+ subscribers — and sometimes free on CBS.
That kind of exposure early in a career can accelerate fan followings, boost sponsorship appeal, and build momentum into bigger fights.
This switch essentially puts the fighter opening the card on closer footing with main-eventers — at least from a viewership standpoint.New Era, New Questions
When the ESPN deal kicked in back in 2019, the UFC's goal was to funnel fans into ESPN+.
Now, with Paramount+, the aim is to make UFC content unavoidable for subscribers while leaning on CBS to hook the casual crowd. This is the most ambitious media shift in the company's history, and it's going to reshape the sport's ecosystem.
It makes the UFC more fan-friendly and accessible than ever. The only thing left to find out is whether the benefits trickle down. Fans are getting a sweeter deal — at least for now — and the UFC is cashing in.
But for the fighters, this could either be a golden age of opportunity or just another case of the house winning bigger than anyone inside the cage. Without a union, their fight for a more competitive share may simply be entering its next round.