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| (Image Source: Professional Fighters League) |
Professional Fighters League (PFL) has officially announced the completion of its acquisition of BELLATOR from Paramount Global, creating a global powerhouse in mixed martial arts (MMA) and accelerating the combined company to become the industry co-leader. PFL has acquired an immense number of top fighters through the Bellator acquisition and its combined fighter roster is now equal in stature to that of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). PFL and UFC both showcase rosters that are 30% comprised of fighters who are top 25 independently world-ranked in their weight- classes. In addition, PFL + BELLATOR now has the best roster of women’s fighters in the world. All newly acquired BELLATOR fighters will become part of the PFL platform moving forward and will be available to compete in PFL fight franchises.
PFL will continue the BELLATOR brand as a “one-off” event product from PFL. PFL is set to launch a reimagined BELLATOR product in 2024 – the “BELLATOR International Champions Series" consisting of eight fight events each year hosted in major cities across the globe with each BELLATOR event to feature two compelling co-main fights competing for championship belts. Through this historic and highly transformative acquisition, BELLATOR becomes one of five live fight franchises of the Professional Fighters League which also includes PFL League Season, PFL PPV Super Fights, PFL Challenger Series, and the PFL International Leagues. Overall, the company can now meet fan and media demand by producing and programming a year-round calendar of live fight content with 30 premium MMA events per year. As a fighter-first and fan-focused organization, PFL plans to stage a landmark mega-event in 2024 – PFL Champions vs. BELLATOR Champions featuring the champions of the two promotions in all seven weight classes in a head-to-head epic fight experience. Details of BELLATOR events, distribution, partnerships, and management will be announced in the coming weeks.
PFL Chairman and Founder Donn Davis and Chief Executive Officer Peter Murray will continue to lead and operate the combined company. “PFL is now a global powerhouse in MMA. Our BELLATOR acquisition turbocharges PFL’s mission to innovate the sport and become the industry co-leader," said Davis. “The combined PFL and BELLATOR fighter rosters are second to none in MMA. We can’t wait to bring MMA fans what they have been asking for – best vs best with the PFL Champions vs BELLATOR Champions Mega-Event," said Murray. With more than 650 million fans across the globe, MMA is the third largest fan-base of all sports worldwide and the fastest-growing sports business of the recent decade with its current $1.75-B industry revenue projected to grow 10% annually to $4-B by 2032. BELLATOR has served fighters and fans worldwide for more than a decade, staging an astounding 301 major MMA fight events. BELLATOR has successfully identified and developed dozens of acclaimed MMA world champions. BELLATOR's current fighter roster has 46 fighters world-ranked in the top 25 of their weight-class per independent source Fight Matrix Rankings.
PFL is the only organization in MMA with the sports-season format, where individual fighters compete in a regular season, playoffs, and championship each year. The combined roster of PFL and Bellator boasts 30% of its fighters independently world-ranked in the top 25 of their respective weight-class, the same percentage as UFC. PFL has an expansive global vision for the sport and is building the “Champions League of MMA” with PFL Europe, PFL MENA, and more international leagues in development. PFL leads in technology and innovation, with its proprietary PFL SmartCage, powering fight analytics, real-time betting, AI scoring, and a next- generation viewing experience. PFL is primetime on ESPN and ESPN+ in the U.S. and is broadcast and streamed in 150 countries worldwide via 20 premium media distribution partners.
