In an industry where making a significant impact within five years isn’t expected, the
Professional Fighters League (PFL) has stepped up to the plate and delivered amazing results.
Within this relatively short time frame, the PFL has not only established itself as the world’s
fastest-growing sports league. The promotion has also managed to establish themselves as arguably the number-2 mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion in the world — a feat that’s quite notable in that short amount of time.
With a true sports format that’s unique to the league, as well as a dynamic roster of some of the
best fighters in the world, the PFL has been able to put on memorable season after memorable
season, each one filled with must-see fights and moments to remember.
What’s more is that the league has enjoyed an unparalleled growth in viewership across different platforms, even surpassing some of the United States’ more established sports. This has helped the league —
which is technically still growing — change the game in combat sports.
PFL Continues Making Waves
The PFL, which was founded back in 2018, has since positioned themselves as the fastest-
growing sports league in the world. Now, five seasons in, the league has strengthened that position by recording a staggering 45-percent increase in viewership in both linear and streaming platforms. This is thanks in part to the league’s even more compelling presentation o the already-exciting sport of MMA, coupled with a roster of fighters that’s among the best in the world.
The PFL, in fact, has already topped Major League Baseball (MLB) in terms of cable viewership,
which is an amazing accomplishment given that the league can still be considered as in its
infancy stage whereas the MLB is an American sporting institution that has been around for
decades. What’s more is that the sport of MMA itself is significantly younger as compared to
that of baseball.
Speaking of institutions, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) remains as the world’s
biggest and most popular MMA promotion. The PFL, in just a sixth of the years that the UFC
has been around, already commands 40% of the viewership of the UFC on a per-event basis.
As the promotion continues to grow, so too will the league’s already impressive viewership marks.
With the expansion to Europe in full swing and future plans to expand into Asia, the Middle
East, and Africa, it’s not surprising that the PFL will continue to reach more eyes as they
continue to expand globally.
Be sure to check out tonight’s sixth event of the 2023 season as the lightweights and welterweights look to punch their tickets to the playoffs. If recent results are any indication, my guess is that viewership will high for tonight’s regular season event.