2022 saw another year of growth for martial arts. Fans around the world were treated to exceptional action by a multitude of organizations. However, the numbers clearly show two global forces are leading the way — ONE Championship and the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
ONE has clearly charted its path as a global rival to the UFC and is the #2 promotion in the west. The data backs this up as both organizations dwarf rivals across various key metrics. In a land where social media and streaming reign supreme, both the UFC and ONE dominate in the martial arts space.
Per the 2022 Nielsen report “Year In Review: Sports Consumption Evolution,” ONE leads the market in global cumulative television reach with 406 million. The UFC is second with 259 million. But the UFC takes the top spot in YouTube viewership with nearly 6 billion views, while ONE checks in with just over 3 billion.
When it comes to social media, the trend of the global duopoly’s stronghold on the market continues. The UFC’s strong social presence has earned them more than 115 million social media followers. ONE has 54 million followers across the major platforms, more than double of Bellator, Glory Kickboxing, PFL, Rizin, and KSW combined.
Those numbers help carry over to online viewership. A category ONE dominated in 2022. ONE had 7.3 billion digital organic video views and 13.8 total digital video views. The UFC came in second with 4.3 billion organic video views and a total of 6.6 billion views. In organic video views, Glory came in third with 877 million, well off the pace of the two martial arts giants.
With numbers such as these, it is clear to see why the market cap reflects their position as the world’s top two martial arts organizations. The UFC, with Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc. as its parent company, has a $10 billion market cap. ONE grew to a market cap of $1.4 billion with backers such as Sequoia Capital, Guggenheim, and others. No other promotion touched these numbers.
2023 is setting itself up to be another compelling year as ONE makes its U.S. debut on Friday, May 5, in Colorado. As the UFC’s chief global rival, they are beginning to make inroads domestically. And now that the world is back open following a trying several years, fans will be treated to more events featuring the world’s best martial arts athletes. While ONE and the UFC sit atop the mountain, the true beneficiaries are the fans who get to enjoy a growing and healthy martial arts landscape with two massive companies.
