For more than a year, President Donald Trump has been sharing his vision for a UFC fight at the White House to celebrate the country's 250th birthday.
That fight, which takes place on Trump's birthday — June 14, 2026 — could come with high costs and a big loss for UFC parent TKO Group Holdings Inc (NYSE:TKO).
• TKO Group Holdings stock is trading at elevated levels. What’s ahead for TKO stock?
UFC Fight at White House
TKO has landed big media rights deals in recent years with Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) signing a deal for WWE and Paramount Skydance (NASDAQ:PSKY) signing a big deal for UFC.
Those media deals could help the company have a cushion in 2026 from high spending on a large marquee UFC fight at the White House.
Speaking at a recent conference, TKO President and Chief Operating Officer Mark Shapiro shared more details on the high cost of the UFC fight at the White House.
Shapiro said the company will spend $60 million or more on the fight, not including pay for fighters and will likely bring in around $30 million in sponsorship revenue. UFC does not anticipate making money on the event, according to the Sports Business Journal.
"Whatever we lose on the event, are we really losing? Other properties would kill to have the opportunity we're going to have," Shapiro said, as reported by the Sports Business Journal. "This is going to be enormous in terms of attention, in terms of earned media, in terms of our fans being happy."
The TKO executive said the fight will likely air on CBS and stream on Paramount+, with plans still in the works. Airing on both or being split between the two could see strong advertising revenue for CBS and sign-ups for the streaming platform.
"We are going to capitalize on the stage that is the White House, but we're not going to capitalize on America; we will not profit from this event no matter what."
Shapiro's comments follow recent remarks from UFC CEO Dana White, who said the league will cover the full cost of the event and no taxpayer funding will be sought.
UFC Financial Impact
UFC has hosted several high-cost fights over the years at exotic locations. The company built "Fight Island" in Abu Dhabi to host fights during the COVID-19 pandemic. The league also had a fight at the Las Vegas Sphere that came with a $21 million budget, which will be passed with this year's White House event.
Shapiro's comments on losing $30 million from the fight could be a key standing ground for investors, who will be hoping the fight brings in money to the top and/or bottom line in other ways. This could be sponsorships signed for longer than one fight or increased attendance at future UFC fights.
Ultimately, Paramount could have the upside from strong viewership for the fight, with the media rights already signed and is set to benefit the most financially.
TKO Group recently posted fourth-quarter financial results. In the quarter, the company had revenue of $1.038 billion and net income of $0.8 million. For the full-year, the company's revenue was $4.735 billion with net income of $546.2 million.
Based on last year's financials, the $30 million loss looks like it could be significant for a company that had net income of less than $600 million for the full fiscal year.
TKO stock could see pressure before the UFC event as analysts dive into the potential positives and negatives for the company and how the marquee fight could put a spotlight on the company, but could be debatable about the financial opportunity.
TKO Group Stock Price Action
TKO Group stock closed Tuesday down 2.23% to $219.94 versus a 52-week trading range of $133.07 to $226.94. TKO Group shares are up 48.8% over the last year and trading near all-time highs.
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