UFC settled a pair of antitrust lawsuits in March with plans to pay $335 million over the following yr, however the settlement seems to have had no influence on the best way the promotion plans to do enterprise shifting ahead.
On Wednesday, throughout a quarterly monetary name with TKO Group Holdings — the merged firm combining the UFC and WWE — each TKO CEO Ari Emanuel and chief monetary officer Andrew Schleimer issued ready statements discussing the top of the antitrust lawsuits, together with particulars about funds and its influence on operations.
“We’re happy to have this matter resolved with out introducing any additional modifications to UFC’s current enterprise operations,” Schleimer mentioned through the name. “The long-form settlement settlement is anticipated to be filed shortly with the courtroom for approval.”
Emanuel echoed that assertion with one in all his personal that learn nearly verbatim to Schleimer’s, relating to the top of the antitrust lawsuits.
“We settled all claims within the UFC antitrust lawsuits, bringing that matter to an in depth, with out introducing any additional modifications to our current enterprise operations,” Emanuel mentioned in a ready assertion.
Primarily based on these statements particularly declaring that the settlement settlement was resolved with none additional modifications to the UFC’s current enterprise operation, it seems the one hit to the promotion was the monetary penalty paid out to the fighters submitting the lawsuits.
There have been two separate lawsuits filed, with the primary in 2014 alleging the UFC engaged “in a scheme to amass and keep monopsony energy out there for elite skilled MMA fighter companies.” The fighters claimed UFC achieved that purpose by way of three key parts: Unique contracts, coercion, and acquisitions that eradicated potential rivals.
The plaintiffs within the case initially sought damages between $894 million and $1.6 billion.
A significant a part of the preliminary lawsuit, which finally led to class certification from the courts, was UFC’s alleged use of long-term, unique contracts, which saved fighters locked up in offers with the promotion and prevented them from exploring choices with different organizations.
Whereas the complete settlement settlement is but to be revealed, the assertion from TKO Group Holdings clearly states that outdoors of the monetary cost, there aren’t any different modifications coming to the best way UFC operates.
So far as the cost goes, Schleimer additionally revealed that the complete $335 million was accounted for on the primary quarter outcomes for 2024, which is why the corporate reported a web lack of $249.5 million. The precise funds might be doled out in three installments over the following yr.
The settlement can also be anticipated to be tax deductible for TKO.
“As beforehand disclosed, the mixture settlement is $335 million,” Schleimer defined. “We recorded a cost for the complete quantity within the first quarter, which might be paid in three installments — $100 million this quarter, $100 million in [the fourth quarter], and the ultimate $135 million within the second quarter of 2025.
“The settlement is anticipated to be deductible for tax functions as and when paid. Consequently, we count on our tax distributions to members as required beneath our up-fee construction to be meaningfully decreased, as such we received’t notice an adversarial dollar-for-dollar influence to money available.”
The courts nonetheless should log off on the settlement settlement, however with each events already agreeing to the phrases, it appears unlikely that the deal will get rejected.
That in the end brings to an finish a decade-long battle between the fighters and UFC as each antitrust lawsuits are actually closed.