Dana White (photo) announced a new contract with Reebok this Tuesday, in NY. Photo: Disclosure
After 20 years of existence, and more than 13 years under Zuffa's command, the UFC is preparing for one of the most drastic changes in its history. This Tuesday (02), at a press conference held in New York (USA), the organization announced an exclusive contract with Reebok to supply sports equipment, something unprecedented among large organizations on the planet. With the new agreement, all fighters under contract with Ultimate will use uniforms and materials provided by the event, in partnership with the company, whether in fights or in events that make up the official agenda.
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The measure, which had already been speculated in recent months, will come into effect on July 6, 2015, when “International Fight Week” will begin, an event promoted by the organization in Las Vegas (USA). ). From this date onwards, including during Fight Week activities, athletes will be prohibited from using products from brands other than those provided by UFC in partnership with Reebok.
During the press conference, UFC president Dana White and the organization's CEO Lorenzo Fertitta compared the agreement with those that other important American sports leagues, such as the NFL, MLB and NBA, have with giants in the sporting goods market. The leaders, however, highlighted a difference that they consider fundamental. “The UFC will distribute a large part of the revenue received from this agreement to the athletes”, guaranteed Fertitta.
This was a very big concern when it came to creating official uniforms for the UFC, considering that a large part of the athletes' current income comes from sponsorship contracts that have as counterpart the exposure of brands on banners or clothing in the octagon and during fight week. From now on, such practices are prohibited, with athletes only being allowed to associate themselves with other brands outside of official events linked to Ultimate.
New payment system will use official ranking
As stated by CEO Lorenzo Fertitta, along with the new sports equipment supply agreement, the UFC will also begin a new model for paying athletes for the use of their image associated with official Reebok products. These values will be hierarchical and based on the positions occupied by the fighters in the ranking of their respective categories.
According to the official UFC website: “Position compensation levels, based on the press-selected ranking system, will reward the champions of their respective divisions with the majority. Other levels will award fighters ranked 1 to 5 (Level 2); 05/10 (Level 3); 10-15 (Level 4). Unranked fighters will be rewarded at level 5 and those fighters not yet ranked will receive the same compensation.”
For the most famous fighters with strong commercial appeal, there will also be the possibility of an extra amount related to royalties from the sale of products licensed with their signature, from clothing to personalized equipment.
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