Owners of UFC in talks to sell company for up to $4B

At least four bidders -- including WME/IMG, China Media Capital, The Blackstone Group and Dalian Wanda Group -- are believed to have submitted bids for the organization. The winning bid, should things proceed, is expected to be for a valuation of in between $3.5 billion and $4 billion, multiple sources with knowledge of the negotiations told ESPN.com.

"As a private company, we don't discuss speculation or rumors related to our business," said David Sholler, vice president of public relations and athlete marketing for the UFC.

Investment bank Goldman Sachs has been representing Zuffa LLC, which bought the UFC in 2001 for only $2 million. Sources with knowledge of the numbers presented to potential investors said that Goldman Sachs had represented UFC's last full year earnings in the $200 million to $250 million range, before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. A new television rights deal, which would begin in 2019, could add an additional $250 million in annual revenue to the bottom line, investors were advised.

The leader in the bid to buy the biggest mixed martial arts business in the world is said to be Chinese-based conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, sources said. Its chairman Wang Jianlin is the richest man in China, worth nearly $35 billion, according to Forbes Magazine.

That's a lot of money. Good for them.

Why are they wanting to sell?  I know its good to sell on a spike, but are they ever going to drop in interest/ratings anytime soon?

dana white denies they are trying to sell.

and i dont think ratings, ppv buys, or popularity will drop anytime soon. mma as a whole is gaining in fan base by the day. the ufc has been projected to become one of the top four sport brands in the country for a while now. they are a world wide organization.

I feel like now is the time to sell high. The UFC is currently in the process of over-saturating the market and I believe the brand will take a huge dip over the next 5 years. What I curious to know is if Dana would be retained to run the company under new ownership. Could we eventually see a completely new ownership group run the UFC while Dana eventually rolls out a new promotion? 

dana is rich enough to do that now but i doubt it. its definitely something to think about, though. if he were to leave im sure a lot of fighters would leave as well.

AE. said:

I feel like now is the time to sell high. The UFC is currently in the process of over-saturating the market and I believe the brand will take a huge dip over the next 5 years. What I curious to know is if Dana would be retained to run the company under new ownership. Could we eventually see a completely new ownership group run the UFC while Dana eventually rolls out a new promotion? 

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Would be a very poor investment if you ask me. Hard to compete once there is an established monster brand. Always a chance you could strike gold twice in the same market, but I wouldn't risk money on it. 

elcheato said:

Would be a very poor investment if you ask me. Hard to compete once there is an established monster brand. Always a chance you could strike gold twice in the same market, but I wouldn't risk money on it. 

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Dana White is arrogant enough to think that he could beat the brand he once built. 

he is, but hes still a smart man.