Broadcast Agreement Makes Sportsnet Home of the UFC® in Canada
TORONTO, March 7 /CNW/ – The Ultimate Fighting Championship® and Rogers Sportsnet today announced a four-year agreement for broadcast rights to UFC® television events in Canada.
Sportsnet, the live-event high-definition leader in Canada, will have a
consistent schedule of UFC programming including preliminary fights of UFC Pay-Per-View events and UFC Fight Night™ events while also having the home sports position for the 10 p.m. (ET) timeslot for The Ultimate Fighter® series. In addition, Sportsnet will broadcast live non Pay-Per-View international UFC events and provide UFC content on a non-exclusive basis across other platforms.
“This deal cements our commitment to bring fans the best UFC coverage in
Canada,” said Scott Moore, President, Rogers Broadcasting. “Sportsnet is excited about this partnership with the UFC as the
sport continues to rapidly grow in this country and beyond.”
“We’re excited to announce a new deal with Rogers Sportsnet that will
put the UFC in millions of homes in Canada,” UFC President Dana White said. “Canada is an amazing market for this sport and we look forward
to bringing the fans more UFC programming. We’re happy to have a strong
television partner in Canada like Rogers Sportsnet.”
“This is great news for the UFC and our fans,” said Tom Wright, UFC Director of Canadian Operations. “Canadians are hungry for UFC shows and segments and now have so much
to look forward to as we continue to grow the sport together with
Sportsnet.”
“Showdown” Joe Ferraro is the featured UFC analyst for Sportsnet Connected and sportsnet.ca, reporting on all UFC events. He is also the host of MMA Connected, which presents highlights and news from around the mixed martial arts
world every Monday night. Sportsnet has been broadcasting UFC
programming for the past four years.
About Rogers Sportsnet
As Canada’s live-event and high definition leader, Sportsnet is
comprised of five channels: four regional channels and the nationally
distributed Sportsnet ONE., which are all available in high
definition. The network broadcasts more NHL games than any other
Canadian network with 253 regional regular-season telecasts, featuring
the Vancouver Canucks, Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames, Edmonton
Oilers and Ottawa Senators.
Sportsnet broadcasts over 500 Major League Baseball games, featuring all
of the Toronto Blue Jays’ 162 games and the World Series, MLB Playoffs,
MLB All-Star Game and Home Run Derby. Sportsnet is a member of
Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium, and an official
broadcaster of the London 2012 Games of the Olympiad. Sportsnet also
features NFL on Sunday and Thursday nights, UEFA Champions League and
Barclays Premier League. Sportsnet also broadcasts the Canadian Hockey
League and the MasterCard Memorial Cup. Sportsnet Connected is the
network’s nightly news program, providing regional coverage of the
day’s events in the world of sports. Fans that want to get connected to
their home teams choose Rogers Sportsnet and sportsnet.ca for news,
highlights and live-events.
Ultimate Fighting Championship® – www.ufc.com
Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev.,
UFC® produces over 12 UFC live Pay-Per-View events annually and 30 live
arena events around the world. UFC content is distributed commercially
through Canadastar in Canada. Globally, UFC programming is broadcast in
over 145 countries and territories, reaching 354 million homes
worldwide, in 19 different languages. Ancillary businesses now include
UFC.com with over 5 million unique visitors per month, the best-selling
UFC “Undisputed” videogame franchise distributed by THQ, UFC Gym™, UFC Fight Club affinity program, UFC Fan Expo™ festivals, branded apparel, trading cards, articulated action figures
and other media including best-selling DVDs and a U.S. bimonthly
magazine.
Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa®, The Octagon™ and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered
trademarks, registered service marks, trademarks, trade dress and/or
service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC and licensed to its
affiliated entities and other licensees in the United States and other
jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of
Zuffa, LLC, its affiliates or other respective owners.