Bellator MMA land 'game changing' multi-year nine-figure deal with DAZN

Baba Ghanoush said:
This makes a lot of sense with all of Coker's talk about UK/European focus.

Still, nothing to incentivize me to pay it for Bellator, if I can already get DAZN's other content through cheaper and easier alternatives.
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The deal makes sense because of the guaranteed money to help them get out of the red.
If this means growth as far as fanbase (or not) is yet to be seen
 
FrankieNYC said:
The deal makes sense because of the guaranteed money to help them get out of the red.
If this means growth as far as fanbase (or not) is yet to be seen
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Same situation as the UFC. Except I dont think the UFC/ESPN deal itself would put WME out of debt
 
FrankieNYC said:
Don't be shocked if Viacom puts Bellator up for sale.
If this deal gets them close to breaking even or a little in the black, the company's value just went up (compared to losing money)
The ratings & fit on Paramount are not good & other networks need content.

just some convo between me & a few financial people ;)
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But wouldn't a sale be a good thing for Bellator?
If the buyer is someone that actually likes mma and wants to grow the brand.
I have never had the feeling that Viacom gives a shit about Bellator other than as "cheap" content for their channels.
 
lsa said:
But wouldn't a sale be a good thing for Bellator?
If the buyer is someone that actually likes mma and wants to grow the brand.
I have never had the feeling that Viacom gives a shit about Bellator other than as "cheap" content for their channels.
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It was Coker's job to change their minds via attracting viewers...
 
lsa said:
But wouldn't a sale be a good thing for Bellator?
If the buyer is someone that actually likes mma and wants to grow the brand.
I have never had the feeling that Viacom gives a shit about Bellator other than as "cheap" content for their channels.
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It could/should be, but you never know.
Remember everyone wanted Lorenzo to sell to "someone that treats UFC like a business" - he did & most bitch 24/7 about it.

You never know until it happens, but I think signs point to it.

bellator doesn't fit with Viacom's networks.
 
FrankieNYC said:
It could/should be, but you never know.
Remember everyone wanted Lorenzo to sell to "someone that treats UFC like a business" - he did & most bitch 24/7 about it.

You never know until it happens, but I think signs point to it.

bellator doesn't fit with Viacom's networks.
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There is that old saying " do something you love, and you will never work a day in your life".
I think its important that a company like UFC and Bellator is owned by people who love mma.
If you want it to grow, you need passion. MMA is more than just numbers on a spread sheet.

I have seen people saying "oh no. I hope Viacom does not sell Bellator because nobody who buys will be as rich as Viacom", like it matters? Its not like Viacom loves mma and will keep pumping in millions in Bellator.
You can be owned by the riches company in the world and it wont matter if they wont bet on you and give you what you need.

In rather see Bellator sold to some one who actually gives a fuck and tries to grow the company.
I haven't seen that really from Viacom.

And NO, I dont see UFC /Zuffa buying them with the monopoly stuff going on.
Bellator need to be "competition" for the UFC.
 
lsa said:
I have seen people saying "oh no. I hope Viacom does not sell Bellator because nobody who buys will be as rich as Viacom", like it matters?
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Nitwits are gonna nitwit

You seen me post hundreds of times that no matter what Coker says, Viacom has Bellator because they are inexpensive programming on two low rated nights.

Now that ratings are down & cost is up, they sell rights to a streaming service to try & break even.
It is a weird deal for a company like Viacom to make if they have longterm plans
 
lsa said:
There is that old saying " do something you love, and you will never work a day in your life".
I think its important that a company like UFC and Bellator is owned by people who love mma.
If you want it to grow, you need passion. MMA is more than just numbers on a spread sheet.

I have seen people saying "oh no. I hope Viacom does not sell Bellator because nobody who buys will be as rich as Viacom", like it matters? Its not like Viacom loves mma and will keep pumping in millions in Bellator.
You can be owned by the riches company in the world and it wont matter if they wont bet on you and give you what you need.

In rather see Bellator sold to some one who actually gives a fuck and tries to grow the company.
I haven't seen that really from Viacom.

And NO, I dont see UFC /Zuffa buying them with the monopoly stuff going on.
Bellator need to be "competition" for the UFC.
Click to expand...

Fertitta loved MMA. And loved UFC.
He had to make business decisions that screwed fighters over.
And sold UFC to someone who doesn't care/better deals with consequences.
 
FrankieNYC said:
Nitwits are gonna nitwit

You seen me post hundreds of times that no matter what Coker says, Viacom has Bellator because they are inexpensive programming on two low rated nights.

Now that ratings are down & cost is up, they sell rights to a streaming service to try & break even.
It is a weird deal for a company like Viacom to make if they have longterm plans
Click to expand...

Yeah. I mean why go out side the house, if you are a media company?
That is weird.
It could be the sign of a potential sale. A buyer would not be too keen on buying a promotion with just one client (Viacom).
But I guess we just have to wait and see...

But I dont have much faith in Viacom and their plans for Bellator.
 
AimedWithV said:
Fertitta loved MMA. And loved UFC.
He had to make business decisions that screwed fighters over.
And sold UFC to someone who doesn't care/better deals with consequences.
Click to expand...

Lorenzo loved MMA because he had the opportunity to turn it into an ATM
90% of what people blame WME for, was created by Lorenzo.

My issue(s) with WME is the lack of synergy with UFC & WME's strength (Hollywood)
They sold a small minority share to all these celebs so they would hype UFC & .... NOTHING

I don't see fighters on Kimmel & Conan & they are owners.

WME has the power to get fighters on Fallon & Stern, but don't.

I don't get it at all.
 
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lsa said:
Yeah. I mean why go out side the house, if you are a media company?
That is weird.
It could be the sign of a potential sale. A buyer would not be too keen on buying a promotion with just one client (Viacom).
But I guess we just have to wait and see...

But I dont have much faith in Viacom and their plans for Bellator.
Click to expand...

Its not as much a buyer will see "one client", as much as Viacom's books look a lot better with this deal.
So while it makes no sense for a media company to do, it makes sense if they are selling, because they can show a possibility of being in the black soon
 
Coker said something after the presser that was interesting

He said that he realizes his son consumes product differently than he does.

I think that is a sign of forward-thinking that he never had before.
Coker seemed stuck in the past with signing past-prime stars, trying PPV, etc.

I like that attitude regarding DAZN
 
lsa said:
There is that old saying " do something you love, and you will never work a day in your life".
I think its important that a company like UFC and Bellator is owned by people who love mma.
If you want it to grow, you need passion. MMA is more than just numbers on a spread sheet.

I have seen people saying "oh no. I hope Viacom does not sell Bellator because nobody who buys will be as rich as Viacom", like it matters? Its not like Viacom loves mma and will keep pumping in millions in Bellator.
You can be owned by the riches company in the world and it wont matter if they wont bet on you and give you what you need.

In rather see Bellator sold to some one who actually gives a fuck and tries to grow the company.
I haven't seen that really from Viacom.

And NO, I dont see UFC /Zuffa buying them with the monopoly stuff going on.
Bellator need to be "competition" for the UFC.
Click to expand...

Viacom did alot for bellator.

They used TNA which was one of their most viewed programming to lead into bellator,

They created a reality show for bellator. (2 if you count gym rescue with randy couture)

They blasted ads all over their other programming pushing the events.

They hired Scott Coker.

etc...

you cant just keep investing when youre not seeing a return.
 
Bubba32 said:
Viacom did alot for bellator.

They used TNA which was one of their most viewed programming to lead into bellator,

They created a reality show for bellator. (2 if you count gym rescue with randy couture)

They blasted ads all over their other programming pushing the events.

They hired Scott Coker.

etc...

you cant just keep investing when youre not seeing a return.
Click to expand...

Fair points my man
 
FrankieNYC said:
Lorenzo loved MMA because he had the opportunity to turn it into an ATM
90% of what people blame WME for, was created by Lorenzo.
Click to expand...

You think so? I don't think anyone builds something from zero and saves a company from bankrupcy if he doesn't have certain passion about it.
He invested too much into something that was a high risk. I'm pretty sure Lorenzo was more emotionally involved than just any random owner.

FrankieNYC said:
My issue(s) with WME is the lack of synergy with UFC & WME's strength (Hollywood)
They sold a small minority share to all these celebs so they would hype UFC & .... NOTHING

I don't see fighters on Kimmel & Conan & they are owners.

WME has the power to get fighters on Fallon & Stern, but don't.

I don't get it at all.
Click to expand...

I honestly don't think they want to. I don't think they consider UFC fighters as someone worth it.
I mean the big herd, not the superstars who will be invited on their own.
They disregard their demands, harden their existence...they don't see UFC as ATM, they see it as factory that develops cheap product.

BTW Hollywood: meanwhile Jason Day , a retired fighter who fought in the UFC 10 years ago with 1-2 record, has a minor /stunt role in upcoming Dwayne Johnson movie.

 
AimedWithV said:
You think so? I don't think anyone builds something from zero and saves a company from bankrupcy if he doesn't have certain passion about it.
He invested too much into something that was a high risk. I'm pretty sure Lorenzo was more emotionally involved than just any random owner.
Click to expand...

I never said he disliked it
He bought it for cheap & didn't invest all that much
The rumors of how badly UFC were doing before TUF is greatly exaggerated
I post the numbers a few months ago from 2004
They started making money within 3-4 years.

Lorenzo was emotionally involved, but that does not mean he is an "MMA guy"
He wanted it to succeed & as UFC grew, his Vegas profile grew & more importantly his bank account.

Dana loved MMA
The Fertittas loved money
It was perfect
Together they created an ATM & sold when they went as far as they could
 
Btw ... great thread
Kudos to those that contributed & were cerebral

Bottom line: Bellator is far more stable financially in 2019 than they were in 2017
That is a positive if you are an MMA fan
Hopefully DAZN catches on because a healthier Bellator is good for MMA
 
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