The UFC will host a historic event on the South Lawn of the White House this June to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States of America, but it won’t come cheap.
The UFC’s close ties to the Trump administration have seen the sport become one of the chosen favorites of the current political establishment. And the fact that the White House will be the site of its first ever sporting event by hosting the mixed martial arts league shows just how strong the bond is at the moment.
Given everything that will be needed for the White House to host an event, it’s no surprise to learn that the price tag will be enormous. White had previously pledged that his organization would pay for the entire event so that it would come at no cost to taxpayers. And on the earnings call of parent company TKO this week, we learned just how high that tab will be.
TKO president Mark Shapiro shared that the company is expecting at least a $60 million cost for the event and that it could still go north. He hopes to monetize the event with corporate partners to help offset at least half of the money needed, via MMA Junkie.
“By the time we get done, all is said and done with the event, what we play the fighters and the fan fest we’re gonna have, that could move north,” Shapiro said about the $60M price tag for the White House event (h/t Jed I. Goodman via X). “It’s definitely not moving south – it could move north. Bottom line is, it’s still a moving target. We are working to determine, on a parallel track, a package of inventory, in and around the weekend of events, that we can monetize primarily with corporate partners – B2B players, which will offset half of the spend. Even if that $60(M) goes up, or rides up on us, we believe we can offset half of the spend. Today, we see it as $60(M) offsetting $30(M).
“I would mention we have several current and prospective partners that are pursuing multi-year partnerships with TKO assets that likely will be inclusive of the White House event. We have a lot of current and prospective partners that would like to be involved, and are inquiring about inventory, as part of their greater partnership deals they either already have, or are negotiating with us for the future. But I want to be clear about something: we will not profit from the White House event independently. We will not be making money on America’s 250th anniversary.”
Shaprio believes the price of business is worth it to reach new fans with what promises to be an extraordinary event. It will at least triple the price of what was UFC’s most expensive show to date when they booked the Sphere in Las Vegas, where the MMA organization spent $20 million to put it on.
Of course, the White House event will be yet one more opportunity for the Trump administration to involve itself in the business of sports. As we have seen just this week with USA hockey and the Olympics, that has made what should have been a magical and unifying moment into one of political division.
Dana White won’t be the only Trump supporter bringing his sport to Washington DC this year for a special event. IndyCar chief Roger Penske is also working with Trump on bringing a brand new race to the nation’s capital in August to join in the 250th anniversary celebrations.
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