It is the goal of every business to make a Forbes list. For KSW owners Martin Lewandowski and Maciej Kawulski, they have done just that. In fact, the owners made a major jump in the 2018 Forbes ‘Most Powerful People in Sport in Poland’ list from the 2017 list. Among the list are Los Angeles Clippers center, Marcin Gortat and seven-time Polish soccer Player of the Year, Robert Lewandowski.
The Growth of KSW
2018 has been a phenomenal year for the company. KSW will have put on five events by year’s end, compared to the four events of previous years. KSW 43, which took place on April 14, 2018, in Wroclaw, had an average viewership of 1.3 million with a peak view of 1.5 million. KSW also partnered with RTL in Croatia for the event, becoming the sole provider of the event as their countryman, Roberto Soldic, defended his welterweight title against South African Dricus Du Plessis. This event was also monumental in show KSW’s growth. It was the first main event in KSW history to not have a Polish-native fighter.
The year is set to conclude with KSW 46 on December 01, 2018 as KSW legend Mamed Khalidov will attempt to once again regain his light heavyweight title and avenge his most recent defeat as he takes on defending champion Tomasz Narkun. The card absolutely has all the ability to earn fight card of the year with the co-main event set between Mateusz Gamrot and Kleber Koike Erbst for the KSW featherweight title.
Platforms and Sponsorships
As their own PPV platform, KSWTV.com, continues to grow, KSW also partnered with sports streaming powerhouse DAZN. KSW also kept relationships with many of their major sponsors such as Monster Energy, Ubisoft, Pitbull clothing, and Briggs & Stratton. KSW is taking a smart approach in their expansion of the company. The country is starting to move westward with many hoping for an eventual push into the United States. With record-breaking viewerships in their home country, a very slow integration into the North American MMA market could bring even larger numbers to the already successful company.
Closing Words from Lewandowski
“It is an honor to be rated so highly by Forbes,” Lewandowski said in a KSW press release. “Maciej and I started KSW out small but with big dreams in 2003. We have seen KSW grow and grow over the years from a local function room in Warsaw to 57,766 people at the National Stadium to packing out arenas all across Poland, Ireland, and the UK. 2018 has been another phenomenal year for us and we will continue to expand domestically into Europe in 2019 and beyond.”
