NFL
By: Julio Olmo
Draft Kings (Nasdaq: DKNG) and UFCÒ, the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization, have announced a powerful and groundbreaking agreement that marks one of the most significant partnerships in UFC history.
Draft Kings will become UFC’s first-ever “Official Sportsbook and Daily Fantasy Partner” in the United States and Canada.
The sports technology and entertainment company will now be able to offer in-game promotions, activations, in-broadcast odds integrations and UFC branding across its daily fantasy and betting products and will possess rights to use official UFC marks and logos.
On a weekly basis, Draft Kings will also provide fans with free-to-play UFC games as well as enhanced prop bets and other innovative sportsbook opportunities. Ahead of UFC 259 on March 6th, Draft Kings has launched a free-to-play UFC pool with $10K in prizing, available for fans to enter and compete nationwide.
“This is a massive deal that will benefit UFC, Draft Kings, and most of all the fans,” said UFC President Dana White. “Draft Kings is the best at what they do in the betting and daily fantasy space, and unlike other sports, UFC has no off season. The action will be non-stop for fans of UFC and Draft Kings. This is the most important deal we’ve ever done to increase engagement with our fans and reach new ones, and I’m looking forward to all the exciting things we’re going to do with Draft Kings over the next few years.”
“Combat sports, and UFC in particular, have scaled significantly across both our sportsbook and daily fantasy verticals, evolving from a niche offering to a high-demand category that we believe will only grow further as we innovate,” said Jason Robins, Draft Kings co-founder, CEO and executive chairman. “While Draft Kings and UFC have previously collaborated on specific events, we are proud to become official partners and explore even more impactful integrations that prioritize the fan experience.”
OFFICIAL SPORTSBOOK AND DAILY FANTASY PARTNER
In 2020, both UFC daily fantasy and sports betting saw substantial growth on Draft Kings, setting new company records on multiple fronts. For the first time, Draft Kings offered customers two MMA Millionaire contests to keep up with the critical mass of customer interest and has plans to offer several additional contests in 2021.
UFC FIGHT CLOCK
Draft Kings will also become the presenting partner of the UFC Fight Clock, UFC’s new, proprietary, and innovative time-keeping system. The UFC Fight Clock utilizes state-of-the-art technology, including the most flexible high-definition screens in the world, to provide fighters and fans with the most accurate time-keeping system in combat sports. The UFC Fight Clock is integrated directly into UFC’s production technology, allowing athletes, fans, and officials in the arena to see the same countdown clock per round as viewers watching the broadcast.
There will be up to four UFC Fight Clocks displayed on UFC’s world-famous Octagon®, giving fighters a view of at least one clock from any vantage point. The UFC Fight Clock presented by Draft Kings will debut this Saturday, March 6, in Las Vegas during UFC® 259: BLACHOWICZ vs. ADESANYA. (See photos of the UFC Fight Clock here.)
ADDITIONAL BRANDED INTEGRATIONS
The agreement with UFC also provides Draft Kings with a branded presence on the Octagon canvas at select UFC events and during Dana White’s Contender Series. In addition, Draft Kings will have numerous sponsorship integrations within UFC content on both linear and digital platforms, including live broadcasts and pay-per-views, social media assets, and programming on UFC FIGHT PASS®, the world’s leading streaming service for combat sports.
More information about Draft Kings is available at www.draftkings.com and fans can download the Draft Kings mobile apps via iOS and Android. To learn more about the UFC, including the upcoming UFC® 259: BLACHOWICZ vs. ADESANYA this Saturday, March 6, fans can visit www.ufc.com.
About Draft Kings:
Draft Kings Inc. is a digital sports entertainment and gaming company created to fuel the competitive spirits of sports fans with products that range across daily fantasy, regulated gaming and digital media. Headquartered in Boston, and launched in 2012 by Jason Robins, Matt Kalish and Paul Liberman, Draft Kings is the only U.S.-based vertically integrated sports betting operator.
Draft Kings is a multi-channel provider of sports betting and gaming technologies, powering sports and gaming entertainment for 50+ operators across more than 15 regulated U.S. and global markets, including Arkansas and Oregon in the U.S. Draft Kings’ Sportsbook offers mobile and retail betting for major U.S. and international sports and operates in the United States pursuant to regulations in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.
Draft Kings’ daily fantasy sports product is available in 8 countries internationally with 15 distinct sports categories. Draft Kings is the official daily fantasy partner of the NFL, MLB and the PGA TOUR as well as an authorized gaming operator of the NBA and MLB and an official betting operator of the PGA TOUR.
