So I just crunched some numbers that were posted in the latest article detailing some of the UFC's finances (there is a thread on it) but I thought I would make my own thread so people don't get fooled by the inflated 'event revenue' data. Now this involves a few problematic steps, and assumes that the Forbes article is presenting the UFC's data accurately. So these are just estimates.
UFC Lawsuit: Select Promoter Financials Finally Released, Including The Big One
This data had to be compared with revenue reporting that aligns with public statements by the UFC and multiple different reporting, for example.
UFC Finances: What lenders know about Zuffa's revenue
UFC secured ‘well over’ US$700m in revenue in 2017
These are my numbers for 3 selected years:
2010 - 10.4%
2013 - 13.7%
2016 - 14.5% (Conor fought 3 times this year and Ronda once)
(The article gives you the UFC's stated 2008 average bout payment plus percentage increases. So I worked out 2005's average payment and then did the listed percentage increases given by the UFC. I then multiplied the average bout payment by the number of fights in the year and compared it with figures media outlets got from reputable sources).
Now if you accept the UFC's claims (as presented by the Forbes analyst), they maintain that in 2016 that in an average bout they were paying out about 220,000 on average for 493 fights. Now of course Conor and Ronda were getting paid, but I find it very hard to believe that this number isn't 'massaged' heavily with all the 10/10ers floating around.
And these years were prior to the ESPN deal, which means fighters will probably get significantly less now. The 7% figure that Professor Brendan Schaub has floated might actually be closer to the truth than we would like to think under the current deal.
UFC Lawsuit: Select Promoter Financials Finally Released, Including The Big One
This data had to be compared with revenue reporting that aligns with public statements by the UFC and multiple different reporting, for example.
UFC Finances: What lenders know about Zuffa's revenue
UFC secured ‘well over’ US$700m in revenue in 2017
These are my numbers for 3 selected years:
2010 - 10.4%
2013 - 13.7%
2016 - 14.5% (Conor fought 3 times this year and Ronda once)
(The article gives you the UFC's stated 2008 average bout payment plus percentage increases. So I worked out 2005's average payment and then did the listed percentage increases given by the UFC. I then multiplied the average bout payment by the number of fights in the year and compared it with figures media outlets got from reputable sources).
Now if you accept the UFC's claims (as presented by the Forbes analyst), they maintain that in 2016 that in an average bout they were paying out about 220,000 on average for 493 fights. Now of course Conor and Ronda were getting paid, but I find it very hard to believe that this number isn't 'massaged' heavily with all the 10/10ers floating around.
And these years were prior to the ESPN deal, which means fighters will probably get significantly less now. The 7% figure that Professor Brendan Schaub has floated might actually be closer to the truth than we would like to think under the current deal.
