VeChain's $100 million sponsorship contract with the UFC
10-06-2022
By: Simran Mishra
VeChain's $100 million sponsorship contract with the UFC
The VeChain Foundation, a blockchain logistics company, has secured a multi-year marketing deal worth over $100 million with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), making it the UFC's first-ever Layer 1 blockchain partner.
VeChain's marketing assets and brand will be assimilated across the UFC in live events, in-arena promotion, social media, and other areas. The UFC is the largest promoter and event organizer for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), and VeChain's marketing assets and brand will be embedded across the UFC in live events, in-arena promotion, social media, and other areas.
According to an unnamed source mentioned by the sources, the arrangement is for about $100 million over a minimum five-year collaboration. As a consequence of the contract, the UFC's sponsorship income is up 30% from an already record-breaking 2021, according to Senior Vice President of Global Partnerships Paul Asencio.
The collaboration will begin immediately, with VeChain assets debuting this Saturday, June 11 at a UFC event in Singapore.
VeChain is a layer 1 ecosystem aimed at businesses, with a focus on supply chain tracking. Vechain's thrifty first quarter has resulted in a significant change in the partnership. The VeChain Foundation barely spent around $4 million in Q1 and less than $660,000 on marketing, according to a financial report filed in May, but it did collect a massive $1.2 billion "war chest."
The agreement is touted to be "one of the broadest integrations into prime UFC assets of any company in UFC history," with VeChain's brand expected to reach 900 million television homes in 175 countries, according to the UFC.
VeChain will control the UFC's official fighter rankings titles, now known as the "UFC Rankings Powered by VeChain," as well as branded footprints inside the ring at all events as part of the contract.
Both firms will develop content for the UFC's social media and other digital channels, which the UFC says will reach 200 million people, and VeChain will be promoted in the venue on big digital screens.
UFC players who participate in marketing efforts for VeChain will be rewarded through a yearly "Brand Ambassador fund."
One of the UFC's major collaborations is its $175 million contract with Crypto.com, which saw the crypto exchange become the UFC's "Cryptocurrency Platform Partner," with athletes collecting fan bonuses in Bitcoin (BTC) as a result of the relationship.
In November 2021, Crypto.com launched the first approved UFC non-fungible token (NFT) collection, and the UFC has proceeded to issue more licensed NFTs in collaboration with NFT creator Dapper Labs.
Stake, a crypto-only casino and sports betting platform, was named the UFC's "First Official Betting Partner" for Asia and Latam in March 2021.
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