Dana White Reveals Potential Replacement for Reebok

The UFC signed an outfit deal with Reebok in 2015. The tenure of the deal will come to an end this year. Consequently, there have been speculations around what course of action the UFC adopts next. President Dana White has confirmed that three major apparel outfits are the frontrunners to be the UFC’s next outfit partner.

Dana appeared on The Schmozone podcast with Helen Yee and Dave Schmulenson aka The Schmo. The latter asked Dana what will happen when the UFC’s deal with Reebok comes to an end. Quite obviously, Dana refrained from giving a very direct answer. The Schmo would have seen it coming. Hence, he named three potential brands who have a chance at grabbing the contract.

“You never know,” Dana White said. “Obviously I can’t tell you that.”

When the two hosts poked Dana a bit more he asked to repeat the name of the three brands. They were Nike, Under Armour and Venom. This time around White was more definite in his response.

“Yes, one of the three,” he said.

Nike is already a giant in the sporting apparel industry. It is the official sponsor of the NBA, MLB, and NFL. Under Armour has seen its stars rise in recent years with several big signings such as Steph Curry, Joel Embiid, Anthony Joshua, and Canelo Alvarez. Venum is the potential dark horse in the race. However, the name isn’t a new one in the UFC. Former pound-for-pound No.1 Jose Aldo had a deal with Venum during his title run.

Dana White didn’t mention how a new deal will affect individual fighters

The big question after the ending of ties between UFC and Reebok isn’t limited to who will grab the deal next. UFC fighters will be more interested in knowing if their share of the deal will change or remain the same.

When the UFC announced its deal with Reebok, it generated negative reviews from many fighters. It was even considered akin to slavery. According to the new deal, fighters were paid a fixed amount that was proportional to their experience in the organization. Champions and challengers were paid a bit more than the others. However, it was still less than what many fighters were making otherwise.

In addition to that, the fighters couldn’t have their sponsors while they are making appearances for fights or during open-workouts. UFC Bantamweight contender Aljamain Sterling said that the deal was taking away food from his table. Former UFC Brendan Schaub revealed that he was one of the worst affected. From making six-figure money from sponsorship deals, he was reduced to a meager $10,000.

With the coming of a new deal, fighters will be hoping for a positive change. They would either expect an increased share of revenue or the right to have their sponsors.