UFC® will reach a larger Chinese audience through the cooperation agreement with SINA Sports
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC®) and SINA Sports have reached a long-term strategic agreement, bringing together the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization and China’s largest online sports portal. As part of the strategic cooperation, SINA Sports will live stream in mainland China UFC® live events that include Chinese fighters as they in the Octagon against the best athletes in the world. SINA Sports will also re-launch the UFC® China website, www.ufc.cn, in accordance with the strategic partnership. Chinese UFC® fans can expect to find new features as well as broader and more frequently updated content on the revamped website.
Every year, UFC® holds over 40 domestic and international events featuring the best fighters from around the world. UFC® Champions like Conor McGregor and rising stars such as Sage Northcutt have become icons of the sport, and original programming such as “The Ultimate Fighter” has taken off with huge success. Recently, UFC® has seen huge interest in its women’s divisions, with athletes such as Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm making headlines, attracting new audiences and captivating fans all over the globe.
At present, UFC® events are broadcast live in 150 different countries and territories. As a result of the partnership，SINA Sports will secure live broadcasting rights for UFC events that feature Chinese fighters. Other highlights and features from UFC events around the world will be made available via video-on-demand on ufc.cn. The new website will also include new features and expanded content that will give fans a deeper more engaging experience, including videos, exclusive pictures, columns, fighter profiles, fan interaction forums, and more. For the first time, ufc.cn will also be optimized for mobile as m.ufc.cn.
SINA also has plans to co-produce unique UFC content exclusively produced for the Chinese market, including educational and training videos. Furthermore, UFC® will exchange content to be “live-tweeted” on SINA Weibo, China’s twitter-like platform, during UFC bouts. Both parties have agreed to work together to provide more diverse reporting and around UFC® events, and plan to co-organize offline events in China, to increase UFC®’s influence in the Chinese market.
“China’s domestic sports industry is clearly booming,” said Kenneth Berger, UFC Executive Vice President and General Manager. “We felt that SINA Sports was a great fit for the UFC brand and would contribute greatly to our effort to expand our content and coverage to the large and loyal fan base across mainland China.”
Arthur Wei, Senior Vice President of SINA and General Manager of SINA Sports expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership. “Our strategic cooperation with UFC will not only influence the domestic following of UFC, but also it is an important opportunity for the domestic Chinese sports media to expand their coverage of UFC events. The influx of high-quality, content-rich Chinese reporting and the engagement of a new, growing Chinese fan base will no doubt add fuel to the fire of UFC’s prowess in the world of sports. As this partnership demonstrates, both UFC® and SINA Sports are committed to expand UFC’s profile and fan base in China. Enhanced coverage and content available on the SINA platform and on ufc.cn will go a long way to achieving these aims.”