UFC Revenue Jumps 60% to $519 Million as the Paramount Money Arrives

• The UFC brought in $519.2 million in the third quarter, up 60%, and its parent company TKO raised full-year guidance for the second straight quarter. TKO

• Netflix will stream Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua worldwide on Dec. 11 in Cardiff, and Deontay Wilder vs. Jai Opetaia is now the co-main event. ESPN

• The fighters suing the UFC over pay are fighting its request to see who funds their lawsuit. The case still has no trial date. Law360

The UFC brought in $519.2 million in revenue in the third quarter, up 60% from $325.2 million a year earlier, its parent company TKO Group Holdings reported on Nov. 4. Adjusted EBITDA, the operating profit figure TKO reports, rose 72% to $285.3 million. That works out to 55 cents of profit on every dollar of revenue, up from 51 cents a year ago. TKO release

The biggest piece is television. Media rights revenue rose 66%, driven by the first year of the seven-year, $7.7 billion Paramount deal that replaced ESPN and pay-per-view in January. That deal averages about $1.1 billion a year.

Ticket money rose faster. Live events revenue was up 83%. UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena, Conor McGregor's return, did a $26 million gate, the largest in UFC history, and TKO said every event it held outside the Meta Apex in the quarter sold out. Partnership revenue rose 29%. TKO also told investors UFC 329 drew nearly 16 million viewers to Paramount+ and peaked at 8.3 million concurrent streams, a record for the platform. Earnings call

One caveat on the comparison: the UFC ran 12 events in the quarter, three numbered cards and nine Fight Nights, against 10 a year earlier. Two extra shows flatter every year-over-year number.

Across the whole company, TKO's revenue rose 21% to $1.36 billion, adjusted EBITDA rose 54% to $555.7 million and net income was $277.9 million. TKO now expects $5.79 billion to $5.83 billion in revenue for 2026 and $2.295 billion to $2.315 billion in adjusted EBITDA. It also said it will use new debt and cash on hand to finish its $3 billion stock buyback.

The one soft line was boxing. TKO's Corporate and Other group, which holds its boxing fees and PBR, slipped to $61.3 million from $63.3 million. TKO said boxing revenue fell because 2025 included a one-time gain when its first equity stake in Zuffa Boxing vested. Executives still described Zuffa Boxing as the place where the company's "enterprise value growth" is.

The UFC is turning more of each dollar into profit than at any point in TKO's reporting, and it is doing it while fighters argue in federal court in Las Vegas, in Johnson v. Zuffa, that the company holds their pay down. A 55% margin is the kind of number that ends up in a brief. It also sets the bar for every boxing promoter trying to compete with Zuffa Boxing for fighters: TKO can afford to spend.

• HBO and TNT. TKO President Mark Shapiro said Paramount+ remains the main partner but that TNT Sports and HBO coming under the Skydance umbrella "sets the table for more reach." There is no timeline and no programming announced. Yahoo Sports

• The fourth quarter. UFC Fight Nights in Doha on Nov. 21 and Riyadh in early December, and TKO said it expects UFC margins to improve again in the fourth quarter.

• The Johnson case. The fight over the plaintiffs' litigation funding is the next ruling to watch (see the Legal Tracker).

Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua streams on Netflix on Friday, Dec. 11, from Principality Stadium in Cardiff. On TKO's earnings call, Shapiro said IMG "sold the media rights to Netflix globally" and will sell the sponsorship inventory itself. Deontay Wilder (45–4–1, 43 KOs) vs. Jai Opetaia (31–0, 24 KOs) was added as the co-main event. ESPN

The UFC's Nov. 14 card at Madison Square Garden is officially "Polymarket UFC 334: Gane vs. Hokit," a prediction market's name on a numbered event with two title fights. The fee was not disclosed. UFC.com

Stevenson and Zuffa Boxing agreed to end his contract in October before he fought for the promotion. Top Rank's Bob Arum said the deal paid Stevenson $15 million "no matter who he's going to fight" and "never made any sense." Zuffa has not disclosed the terms. EssentiallySports

Under the Paramount deal, TKO sells traditional commercial ad inventory for UFC broadcasts itself. Shapiro's pitch to advertisers: 46% of the UFC audience is 18 to 34. Earnings call

Canelo Alvarez took the WBC super middleweight title from Christian Mbilli by unanimous decision on Oct. 31 in Riyadh, 117–110, 116–111 and 115–112, and is now 64–3–3 (39 KOs). DAZN sold it in the U.S. as a $79.99 pay-per-view. ESPN · Yahoo Sports

Public filings and reported claims only. Every row links to its source.

Sources: UFC.com, UFC.com (Zuffa Boxing 13), DAZN schedule.

UFC 334 is officially "Polymarket UFC 334." Should prediction markets and sportsbooks put their names on the biggest fight cards?

• Yes, it is just sponsorship money

• Only on smaller cards

• No, keep betting brands off the marquee

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