It has been known that the UFC‘s deal with Reebok was set to expire at the end of this year. The Reebok era ushered the UFC into more of a mainstream sport look and feel with fight kits. The deal created a lot of animosity due to sponsor money, and the deal has received criticism from many pundits. With the deal coming to an end, we’ve been wondering who would take over after the deal expires. We got our answer today.
Welcome to the new era!
UFC names Venum new exclusive outfitting partner. ?
MORE ?? https://t.co/ZTNaSt0tYy pic.twitter.com/oFwwgyOH9o
— UFC (@ufc) July 10, 2020
UFC-Venum Deal starts April 2021
The UFC announced this morning that the combat sports apparel company, Venum, will be taking over for Reebok in April of next year. The Reebok deal will continue through March of 2021. Many people, including myself, figured the UFC was going to be going to one of the big dogs like Nike after the deal expired.
The Schmo was the first one to suggest Venum on his recent Schmozone Podcast with Dana White. When you think about the history of the sport, Venum is the best choice. Venum is a combat sports brand that has sponsored fighters for years. It’ll be interesting to see the numbers, but early indications are that this is a great deal for the fighters.
Fighter pay has always been a question with the UFC, and the Reebok deal didn’t help things. Fighters saw their wages slashed when they lost sponsorship money with the Reebok deal. Instead, they received a very small portion of Reebok kickbacks. With a combat sport company like Venum, one has to believe that the fighters are going to be taken care of.