The UFC lost 30 million dollars on the event at the White House

Ari Emanuel, CEO of TKO Group, which owns the UFC, has said on numerous occasions that UFC Freedom 250, the event held at the White House in honor of Donald Trump’s 80th birthday, was a notable success. But it seems the company’s numbers tell a completely different story. Because according to the company itself, this event resulted in a $30 million loss.

An event with its ups and downs

At the company’s Q2 2026 earnings call, Emanuel stated that “this event was a resounding success for our company, the UFC brand, and the sport of mixed martial arts, achieving great visibility, media impact, audience expansion, and a fan experience that lasted the entire weekend”. That clashed with the company’s own statements.

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At that same meeting, Andrew Schleimer, CFO of TKO, acknowledged that the event can hardly be called a triumph. “We incurred significantly higher-than-normal costs, which we partially offset with sold-out global sponsorship inventory”. He added that “as anticipated, it resulted in a loss of approximately $30 million, our margins both at UFC and on a consolidated basis were significantly affected”.

The value of the event, in any case, was in its viewership. UFC Freedom 250 was watched by 8.2 million viewers across the US and South America on Paramount+, making it the platform’s biggest live event to date. That means, according to Schleimer, it will help them “leverage this event and its value to bring in partners who have an impact in 2026, 2027 and, in some cases, 2028 and beyond”. How that will translate for the company remains to be seen.