UFC White House: Promotion bids to spend $60 million on event

The UFC will spend around $60m (£44.3m) on its one-of-a-kind event at the White House, according to TKO Group Holdings chairman Mark Shapiro.

The promotion is scheduled to host an unprecedented screening at the White House on June 14 to mark the 250th anniversary of America’s independence.

US President Donald Trump announced the plans last year, which were confirmed by UFC president Dana White and the promotion’s parent company, TKO Group Holdings.

The UFC will not profit from the event, according to TKO President and Chief Operating Officer Shapiro, who sees the show as a “long-term investment” that revolves around “earned media.”

He added that TKO is working with “corporate partners”, whose investments he hopes will offset about $30m (£22.2m) of the cost.

“I want to be clear about one thing: We will not profit from the event at the White House independently. We will not make money on America’s 250th anniversary,” Shapiro said.

“The bottom line is it’s still a moving target. Even if the $60 million goes up, or gets hit, we think we can offset half the spending. Today, we see it offsetting the $60 million with $30 million.”

The UFC has not confirmed its full plans for the event, but White said he expects there will be about 5,000 spectators for the show on the South Lawn of the White House.

He added that there would be about 80,000 more fans watching the game at a nearby park in Washington, D.C. called the Ellipse.

Trump, a close friend of White, said the fights on the card would be “the biggest ever” but the UFC has yet to confirm any bouts.

A number of fighters have expressed interest in competing on the card, including Jon Jones, Conor McGregor, Alex Pereira, Amanda Nunes, Nate Diaz, and Islam Makhachev.