"We lost nearly $110 million" - Dana White recalls how the pandemic affected the UFC
UFC president Dana White was one of the thousands of businessmen who suffered at the hands of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, true to his nature, White spearheaded the quest for normalcy. But this came at a great personal cost, and Dana White detailed as much while conversing with BroBible's Arthur Kade recently.
White admitted that he lost a fortune in terms of revenue from gate sales; however, it was not all doom and gloom, as the UFC enjoyed unprecedented growth in terms of its presence on social media and PPV sales.
"It was massive for us. The growth in our social media, ratings, pay-per-view buys. So I lost $110M at the gate in 2020, but every fight that we did, did almost a million pay-per-view buys. So in all these other areas where we were losing money, we gained it back somewhere else," said Dana White.
Watch the interview below:
Dana White opens up about the perils of bringing fans back
Considering how Dana White and the UFC were the first sporting promotion to organize events in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was only natural for the UFC president to lead the way in bringing fans back to the arenas for live events.
UFC 261 marked a milestone for the UFC as the event was not only one of the most stacked cards - with three title fights - but also the UFC's first event with fans at maximum capacity since the onset of the pandemic.
Also Read: Dana White reveals why he believes MMA will be the world’s biggest sport
Dana White, unsurprisingly, had to wade through the bureaucratic waters in a bid to bring fans back to the arenas. Here's how he described that experience.
"I had to talk to the Floridas and the Texases. The gangster of all gangsters man, Florida was the one to get it done first. Jacksonville took us out there and let us do events safely during the pandemic when nothing else was going on," admitted Dana White.
White waxed lyrical about the brass in Jacksonville and talked about how keen he was to repay their faith in him for letting the UFC organize events by bringing one of the most star-studded events to their shores in the form of UFC 261.
With things finding their way back to normalcy, Dana White and the UFC will certainly be heralded for their organizational skills, putting countless events together and offering fans some respite in the most tumultuous of times.
Also Read: "I truly believe that right now he's the best fighter in the world" - Dana White reveals who he thinks is the pound-for-pound number one