What is the most popular sport on social media in the world?
Even most diehard fans of the NFL, which dominates the U.S. sports landscape, concede that soccer (or football as it’s known almost everywhere else) probably dominates social media worldwide.
Dana White claims there’s a new contender for that title—and it’s not the hugely successful UFC that he runs as president and CEO.
White appeared on the FLAGRANT podcast this week, where he touted the surprising success of his Power Slap, the slap-fighting promotion he founded in 2022.
Never seen it? This viral clip featuring Power Slap star Sheena “The Hungarian Hurricane” Bathory tells most people all they need to know about whether they would like it or not.
Sheena “The Hungarian Hurricane” Bathory 😘😘
[Watch the full replay of #PowerSlap5 now on Rumble] pic.twitter.com/9viZGfTx3M
— Power Slap (@powerslap) November 3, 2023
White cited some incredible statistics about Power Slap’s social media reach in terms of subscribers and views.
“Think about this: we started this thing 15 months ago, and right now, on YouTube, we have more subscribers than NHL, MLS, NASCAR, PGA, Barstool Sports,” White said. “We have over a billion YouTube views. Eight of the top 12 YouTube shorts, against other major sports, are Power Slap.”
That’s without question impressive for any sport, let alone one that is still getting started. But White went a step further.
“We have more followers than every single professional sport,” White said. “Every professional sports team, we have more followers than them in 15 months.”
That’s a stretch by any definition. Mediaite broke down the social media numbers and pointed out that on Instagram, for example, Power Slap has 3.9 million followers versus Real Madrid’s 162 million. Power Slap also fell short in other comparisons to Madrid.
It’s not the first time White has made bold claims about Power Slap.
In 2023, he said that in terms of social media metrics, “We’re number one in all of sports. And when I say all of sports, if you take the NFL, the NBA, the NHL, F1, WWE, and who am I forgetting, and added them all together, their numbers don’t compare to Slap’s.”
Yet somehow, those figures didn’t translate into TV viewers. TBS dropped Power Slap earlier this year after one season, although Power Slap landed a new contract with Rumble, an online video and web hosting platform.
White claims Power Slap is already worth $750 million, an impressive feat for such a short period of operation. However, it is still a drop in the bucket compared to the NFL, MLB, NBA, etc., where team franchises sell for many times that amount.
It’s fair to call Power Slap a viral phenomenon on social media. But for White to claim it has “more followers than every single professional sport” is, sorry to say, a slap to the face of those other sports.
[Mediaite]
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.