Press release
Setanta strikes with exclusive long-term deal for UFC super-cards
-All UFC events to be shown exclusively live on Setanta from July 2008-
-UK events deal starts immediately with UFC 80: RAPID FIRE-
LONDON, 17 January 2008: The Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC) organisation and Setanta Sports have announced a multi-year deal to make Setanta Sports 1 the exclusive home for all of the UFC’s big UK and US fights plus all other UFC programming, in Britain and Ireland.
The deal will see Setanta Sports broadcasting all the UFC UK fights in 2008 and 2009 and later in July 2008 all other cards will be available exclusively live on Setanta. As such, Setanta subscribers in 2008 will be able to see at least four UK live events and after July, all other US live events.
UFC fans should note that all the UFC supercards will NOT be available on a pay-per-view basis, but only to Setanta Sports subscribers at just £9.99 a month, reinforcing Setanta’s position as premium sports broadcasters offering superb value to sports fans.
The first of the four annual live UK super-shows is UFC 80: RAPID FIRE, which will be broadcast live from the Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, exclusively on Setanta Sports 1 from 8pm on Saturday, 19th January, 2008. Other UK events are presently planned for March, June and September this year.
In addition, from tonight, Setanta will also be the home of the UFC’s newest TV series, WIRED, where UFC commentator Joe Rogan gives viewers his unique perspective on today’s elite mixed martial artists and famous fights and fighters throughout UFC history. WIRED airs every Thursday at 10pm, on Setanta Sports 1.
Marshall Zelaznik, UFC UK Division President, said: “We are delighted to continue and expand our relationship with Setanta Sports. In 2007, the UFC became a huge part of the sports landscape in the UK and we are very excited to be able to build on that in 2008 and beyond with Setanta Sports becoming the home of all our UK-based fight nights and all UFC programming.
“The UFC is a perfect fit amongst Setanta’s other great sports programming and UFC’s placement on such a sports network underlines our position as the leading producer of mixed martial arts programming in the world.”
Leonard Ryan, Setanta's joint Chief Executive, said: "Our exclusively live coverage of the UFC’s UK supercards is another significant step forward in Setanta's development as a major sports broadcaster. The UFC is the world’s leading professional mixed martial arts organization, which has made the sport of MMA the fastest growing sport in the world. Together with our live Premier League coverage, top class boxing cards and other sports programming, we believe that at ten pounds a month UFC fans will recognise Setanta as a must-have.”
Setanta Sports is available for £9.99 a month to satellite viewers, via a Freeview box or integrated digital TV with a viewing card slot and on BT Vision and Tiscali. Virgin Media XL pack subscribers can see Setanta for no additional charge, whilst M and L pack subscribers can add the Setanta Sports Pack for just £9.99 per month.
To subscribe, go to: setanta.com/ufc or call 08712 00 42 80, citing “UFC” as your reason for subscribing.
-ends-
For further information, contact:
James Matheson or Richard Tompkins at Braben on 020 566 2990 or email james@braben.co.uk / richardt@braben.co.uk
Ant Evans, Senior Communications Manager, UFC UK Division on 077952 98680 or aevans@ufc.com
Notes to editors:
The Ultimate Fighting Championship® is the world’s leading professional mixed martial arts organization and offers the premier series of MMA sports events. Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev. With offices in London, England, UFC® produces over 30 events annually that are distributed throughout to over 100 countries and territories throughout the world. For more information, or current UFC fight news, visit <http://www.ufc.com/> www.ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or <http://www.ufcespanol.com/> www.ufcespanol.com
Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa™, The Octagon™ and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered trademarks, trademarks, trade dress or service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC in the United States and other jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of Zuffa, LLC or other respective owners.
Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports is a leading international pay-TV sports broadcaster operating nine channels in the UK, Ireland, North America and Australia. Founded in 1992, its premium sports content is available to more than 50 million digital homes worldwide.
Setanta operates more sports channels than any other broadcaster in the UK and Ireland. Setanta Sports is the most widely-available premium sports channel in the UK and is available to all digital homes: on satellite, via Freeview, Virgin Media, Tiscali, BT Vision and by Broadband, ensuring the widest possible distribution to all sports fans.
Setanta Sports is the only broadcaster of premium sports on digital terrestrial (Freeview). The Setanta Sports 1 channel, featuring the best of Setanta’s premium live content, is available on Freeview boxes and digital TVs with viewing card slots.
The Setanta Sports Pack is available to satellite and cable customers and is made up of the following channels:
Setanta Sports 1
Setanta Sports 2
Setanta Golf
Racing UK
Racing World*
NASN (North American Sports Network)*
Celtic TV
Rangers TV
LFC TV
Arsenal TV*
Setanta Sports is also available online, live and on demand, via Setanta by Broadband, featuring all Setanta’s leading content offered on Setanta Sports 1, Setanta Sports 2 and Setanta Golf, allowing sports fans to access at home, work or elsewhere.
For a full list of Setanta Sports’ exclusively live sporting content and fixture details, please visit www.setanta.com. Content includes Barclays Premier League football, Clydesdale Bank Premier League, Blue Square Premier, US PGA Golf, Live Magners League rugby, top-flight boxing, Ultimate Fighting Championship and action from some of Europe’s best football leagues. From 2008, Setanta’s exclusively live content will include the FA Cup, England international friendlies and 2010 World Cup qualifiers involving England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Setanta Sports is available from £9.99 a month, with no annual contract required. For the latest pricing offers on any platform, please visit www.setanta.com or call 08712 10 20 30.
Setanta Sports is also joint owner with Virgin Media of Setanta Sports News, the new 24-hour sports news channel, available free-to-air on the Virgin Media platform, and also on satellite, covering all the top sports stories from the UK and abroad. Setanta Sports News provides viewers with the breaking sports headlines that matter every 20 minutes, delivered by a pool of presenters and multi-skilled reporters in the field, as well as supported by regular views and opinions from fan correspondents across the UK. Setanta Sports News EPG number on Virgin Media is 518. The satellite EPG number is 435.
*not available to Virgin Media customers