With the Reebok deal with the UFC expiring at the end of the year, there were questions as to who the promotion would partner with next for their apparel. Now those questions have been answered, as Dana White has revealed that they will be working with Venum moving forward.
This massive announcement was made by an official press release from the UFC. Here they revealed their intent to partner with the mixed martial arts apparel brand, begining next year when Reebok’s deal expires. Although it is worth noting that Reebok will still be proving footwear for the promotion until 2021.
“We’re pumped that VENUM will be joining us as our new exclusive global outfitting and apparel partner,” said UFC President Dana White. “VENUM is an Iconic combat sports brand that understands the unique needs of MMA athletes. Franck Dupuis and his team at VENUM have the technical knowledge and experience that will produce world-class UFC Fight Kits and apparel. We’re looking forward to collaborating with them on this next evolution of UFC’s outfitting program.”
Venum’s History With The UFC
Prior to the UFC’s exclusive partnership with Reebok, Venum was among the many brands that were sponsoring fighters. Although they are still extremely prominent and relevant in the space, they took a blow when no longer able to outfit fighters in the sport’s biggest promotion. Of course, they were still able to be an in-cage sponsor for fighters competing in other promotions, as well as working with the UFC’s athletes outside of competition.
In addition to making slick designs for fight shorts and t-shirts, Venum is also known for their high quality fight gear. They are one of the most trusted and respect brands in combat sports. Provided that they do not make the kinds of stupid mistakes Reebok made when they were first introduced, it is safe to assume that MMA fans and fighters will be more welcoming of this brand.
That being said, there is no details yet on what this means for the UFC fighters, in terms of pay. One of the chief complaints from fighters when the Reebok era began, was that they lost a lot of money they would have gotten from sponsors, that was not nearly made up from Reebok. Hopefully this will not be as big of a concern this time around.
