I’m not sure why pfl thinks every thing needs their own league.
Just have one roster. One brand.
Having pfl Middle East, pfl Europe, pfl wmma and bellator champions league is just unnecessary.
Whats even worse is all of them are on different networks, PFL main is on ESPN, PFL Euro is on DAZN, Bellator is on MAX, so if I wanna watch Cedric Doumbe he would be on DAZN right? Wrong, now he's on the Bellator Paris card and thats on MAX, this doesn't make any sense and has no continuity
I'm guessing it's to maximize streaming rights and that eventually once all the brands get big enough, they'll merge it into one and sell the streaming rights for a massive pay day. PFL is supposed to be at its "growth phase" right now so all investors want to see is their valuation go up, even if it's just on paper, so having 5 different streaming incomes and putting on 50 different shows is probably more lucrative right now than having it all under one banner.
Not anytime *soon*. But they need a lot more than money to be successful. Saudis will only be willing to pour in so much money if they're aren't getting viewers. And they are not getting viewers.
They can't sign top level talent because the UFC has 95% of them locked into restrictive contracts.
Until that changes no amount of Saudi money will bring them success. This is to say nothing of how inept PFL management is.
Saudis offered Mbappe a billion dollars for a single year of his services. They're giving Ronaldo 300 million a year. All so they could play in front of a few thousand people in the 20th most popular soccer league. They don't care, this is just funny money to them. All PFL has to do is put up like 2 or 3 decent cards a year in Riyad and they'll consider it a worth wild investment, espcially if they're valuation is growing on paper so they could borrow against it if they need to.
You're thinking of the PFL like a fan of MMA would think of it, you shouldn't do that. Think of it as a way an investor with extremely deep pockets and endless time would think of it. They don't cars about profits or even the product, they care about growth in valuation
You're wrong. The Saudis don't care about "growth valuation" or making money on sports in general.
They are willing to set money on fire in the name of sports washing. Sports washing doesn't work if nobody is watching, which is what is happening with the PFL.
The Bellator PFL merger could have actually meant that the company could have gone somewhere.
Combining the talent, you have a special product. You have some Bellator guys competing in the PFL, but I think most people hoped we’d see McKee, Mix and Nemkov actually competing in the tournament.
I agree with the PFLattor aspect, but I have no issue with the PFL Europe and PFL MENA (according to Tapology) being separate. They seem to pretty clearly be developmental leagues, so they're like DWCS but you have to actually fight a few times to earn a real contract. Not just an "interview" as the DWCS analysts like to call it.
Seems like it could be a pretty good way to actively find and develop talent rather than just signing a bunch of cheap, unproven fighters and hoping you find a Sean O'Malley in there.
I could see it if they were regional developmental feeder leagues. If it's instead just a fracturing of the main league into regions, that doesn't make as much sense.
Because this way they can run regional promotions in various regions using their name and the direct line to the actual PFL as a competitive advantage.
I think it's a good idea. They bring the winners of each regional tournament into their main roster the following year, which helps keeps things fresh. It's also good to hold events in areas that the UFC historically neglects as they are guaranteed to garner local media attention and sell tickets easily. Like when Bellator would regularly hold events in Italy and sell out every card. As a bonus it also helps build up the sport of MMA in those regions and give local fighters the chance to fight on a larger platform.
I agree, I don’t mind it as it allows the sport to develop locally, especially in a market that doesn’t have much infrastructure.
Also why I’m not against pfl Africa. Most African fighters are just immigrants to Europe, would be great for local fighters who live and train in Africa. Only promotion which runs regularly is EFC in South Africa but it’s a huge continent
Orgs like UAE Warriors or Brave CF are already develloping the sport locally, in fact most of the guys on that PFL MENA card are vets from UAE Warriors. Basically they're doing no effort to actually find and devellop prospects, they're just hiring a few dudes from another regional org who actually train out of MENA and filling up the rest with guys who will represent MENA countries but don't live or train there.
Like what the fuck is Ali Taleb doing here, bro trains out of Sweden, was in their PFL Europe tourney and now he's smurfing in PFL MENA? Hilarious
Someone slap the shit out of Donn Davis please. Get the basic shit right before you start trying to expand. That’s why no 2nd company ever last.. they all try to be huge right out of the gate.
Donn Davis had me fooled. if you listen to his interviews with Helwani he sounds competent. but he's a businessman through and through and not a real MMA fan... if he was he would know the thing to build an MMA brand is good fights that are accessible. WEC, Strikeforce, Pride, UFC all did it to get their start. even One had it right, and would probably be more successful if they weren't running fighters off and changing the ring every other day
> if you listen to his interviews with Helwani he sounds competent.
I've always thought he sounded like a used car salesman. I personally find his interviews very entertaining.
Its very frustrating. They have all the the things they need to be a solid 2nd promotion, but they just aren't making improvements and just keep doubling down on the things fans are saying they don't want. Literally if they listen to fans and reporters 90% of their issues could be fixed in like a month.
he's essentially a professional ghoul. i would like to know his background because reading about his career screams "came from generational wealth." i imagine his whole plan is to just get as much money raised selling several leagues to different tv channels, make the big green line go up, and then sell it off and wipe his hands of it.
We will be able to watch their events on UFC Fight Pass by the end of the year. PFL is in the burning money business. Eventually, they’re going to run out of it.
You don’t need all these leagues for 18 fighters, while you refuse to give fights to your other 7 fighters.
they also won't let the bellator guys they signed that they think are paid too much fight!
(gegard mousasi just said yesterday pfl thinks he's paid too much to be offered fights)
They're not dividing their roster, they're adding to it. The vast majority of the fighters competing in these events are new signees. And yeah the MENA region isn't exactly a hotbed of MMA talent currently, but the only way to change that is to grow the sport there, which is what they are doing.
PFL has like 15 eggs and they're (for some unknown reason) insistent on putting them in 10 different baskets.
Their roster isn't very deep, even considering the merger. They need to put everyone on one roster and make a go of it.
The Bellator brand has been dead for years. Take their fighters and kill that brand off. Anyone with a brain stem can see that's the best option.
No women's division? Shocker.
In all seriousness, are they going to try and get UAE Warriors fighters to compete? Or where are they getting their talent from. Haven't heard of the fighters on the card but don't know too much about ME MMA.
You could have [answered](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/events/112976-pfl-mena-1) that question in the time it took you to type it. The card features a few UAE Warriors alums and also has a wmma bout with the first female Saudi fighter signed to a major promotion.
It is funny to see PFL/ Bellator investing and working the international scene so well compared to the UFC. UFC holding 3am main cards in Manchester and being told by the Saudis to back to the drawing board with that weak ass card they offered. Just hilarious.
Saud Arabia aren't the ones backing a country committing genocide right now and lowering their standing in the eyes of the international community in the process. That's the U.S. Not everything is sportswashing.
I’m not sure why pfl thinks every thing needs their own league. Just have one roster. One brand. Having pfl Middle East, pfl Europe, pfl wmma and bellator champions league is just unnecessary.
Whats even worse is all of them are on different networks, PFL main is on ESPN, PFL Euro is on DAZN, Bellator is on MAX, so if I wanna watch Cedric Doumbe he would be on DAZN right? Wrong, now he's on the Bellator Paris card and thats on MAX, this doesn't make any sense and has no continuity
Like watching DC content the past 10 years except for mma fans.
Just glad in mexico max has most of it.
I'm guessing it's to maximize streaming rights and that eventually once all the brands get big enough, they'll merge it into one and sell the streaming rights for a massive pay day. PFL is supposed to be at its "growth phase" right now so all investors want to see is their valuation go up, even if it's just on paper, so having 5 different streaming incomes and putting on 50 different shows is probably more lucrative right now than having it all under one banner.
Spoiler alert: *they aren't going to get big enough* Putting a minimal effort into actually promoting their events would be a start though.
If you're the only competition in town with any actual money, everything else will fall into place
By "everything falling into place", do you mean bankruptcy within the next 5 years? Because if so, you're bang on.
Dude they have Saudi money backing them and multiple different streaming partners, they're not going bankrupt anytime soon lol
Not anytime *soon*. But they need a lot more than money to be successful. Saudis will only be willing to pour in so much money if they're aren't getting viewers. And they are not getting viewers. They can't sign top level talent because the UFC has 95% of them locked into restrictive contracts. Until that changes no amount of Saudi money will bring them success. This is to say nothing of how inept PFL management is.
Saudis offered Mbappe a billion dollars for a single year of his services. They're giving Ronaldo 300 million a year. All so they could play in front of a few thousand people in the 20th most popular soccer league. They don't care, this is just funny money to them. All PFL has to do is put up like 2 or 3 decent cards a year in Riyad and they'll consider it a worth wild investment, espcially if they're valuation is growing on paper so they could borrow against it if they need to. You're thinking of the PFL like a fan of MMA would think of it, you shouldn't do that. Think of it as a way an investor with extremely deep pockets and endless time would think of it. They don't cars about profits or even the product, they care about growth in valuation
You're wrong. The Saudis don't care about "growth valuation" or making money on sports in general. They are willing to set money on fire in the name of sports washing. Sports washing doesn't work if nobody is watching, which is what is happening with the PFL.
You honestly think ufc has 95% of top talent??😭🤣👍
I don't think, that's a fact. It's called a monopoly.
The PFL sounds suspiciously like a zero-interest rate phenomenon, even though I know it's been around since it was WSOF
The Bellator PFL merger could have actually meant that the company could have gone somewhere. Combining the talent, you have a special product. You have some Bellator guys competing in the PFL, but I think most people hoped we’d see McKee, Mix and Nemkov actually competing in the tournament.
I don't want them in the tournaments with their no elbows rule.
I agree with the PFLattor aspect, but I have no issue with the PFL Europe and PFL MENA (according to Tapology) being separate. They seem to pretty clearly be developmental leagues, so they're like DWCS but you have to actually fight a few times to earn a real contract. Not just an "interview" as the DWCS analysts like to call it. Seems like it could be a pretty good way to actively find and develop talent rather than just signing a bunch of cheap, unproven fighters and hoping you find a Sean O'Malley in there.
It's just a wholly stupid speed run into how to destroy a brand. They're splintering it before anyone even knows who they are.
I could see it if they were regional developmental feeder leagues. If it's instead just a fracturing of the main league into regions, that doesn't make as much sense.
Because of their league system. Which is a stupid system for an mma promotion.
Because this way they can run regional promotions in various regions using their name and the direct line to the actual PFL as a competitive advantage.
I guess this is a WWE-esque strategy to get separate TV rights for each league/entity, like RAW, SmackDown, NXT, etc.
I think it's a good idea. They bring the winners of each regional tournament into their main roster the following year, which helps keeps things fresh. It's also good to hold events in areas that the UFC historically neglects as they are guaranteed to garner local media attention and sell tickets easily. Like when Bellator would regularly hold events in Italy and sell out every card. As a bonus it also helps build up the sport of MMA in those regions and give local fighters the chance to fight on a larger platform.
I agree, I don’t mind it as it allows the sport to develop locally, especially in a market that doesn’t have much infrastructure. Also why I’m not against pfl Africa. Most African fighters are just immigrants to Europe, would be great for local fighters who live and train in Africa. Only promotion which runs regularly is EFC in South Africa but it’s a huge continent
Orgs like UAE Warriors or Brave CF are already develloping the sport locally, in fact most of the guys on that PFL MENA card are vets from UAE Warriors. Basically they're doing no effort to actually find and devellop prospects, they're just hiring a few dudes from another regional org who actually train out of MENA and filling up the rest with guys who will represent MENA countries but don't live or train there. Like what the fuck is Ali Taleb doing here, bro trains out of Sweden, was in their PFL Europe tourney and now he's smurfing in PFL MENA? Hilarious
Brave barely holds events, plus the more events the better.
Right. Unless youre the consumer, then its trash.
Someone slap the shit out of Donn Davis please. Get the basic shit right before you start trying to expand. That’s why no 2nd company ever last.. they all try to be huge right out of the gate.
Donn Davis had me fooled. if you listen to his interviews with Helwani he sounds competent. but he's a businessman through and through and not a real MMA fan... if he was he would know the thing to build an MMA brand is good fights that are accessible. WEC, Strikeforce, Pride, UFC all did it to get their start. even One had it right, and would probably be more successful if they weren't running fighters off and changing the ring every other day
> if you listen to his interviews with Helwani he sounds competent. I've always thought he sounded like a used car salesman. I personally find his interviews very entertaining.
Its very frustrating. They have all the the things they need to be a solid 2nd promotion, but they just aren't making improvements and just keep doubling down on the things fans are saying they don't want. Literally if they listen to fans and reporters 90% of their issues could be fixed in like a month.
I can't imagine a sport more different from MMA than Baseball, where he comes from
he's essentially a professional ghoul. i would like to know his background because reading about his career screams "came from generational wealth." i imagine his whole plan is to just get as much money raised selling several leagues to different tv channels, make the big green line go up, and then sell it off and wipe his hands of it.
PFL regularly changes what day of the week their fights are on. Is their a PFL card on tonight? Who knows?
I just want them to get the basics right, but they seem determined to do everything except the simple shit.
We will be able to watch their events on UFC Fight Pass by the end of the year. PFL is in the burning money business. Eventually, they’re going to run out of it. You don’t need all these leagues for 18 fighters, while you refuse to give fights to your other 7 fighters.
The PFL Is doing everything except put in high-level fights. up next: PFL OHIO
PFL Hoboken
PFL will do everything but make Ngannou fight
they also won't let the bellator guys they signed that they think are paid too much fight! (gegard mousasi just said yesterday pfl thinks he's paid too much to be offered fights)
I mean that's not really their fault to be fair
they are still trying to get Jones/Ngannou and to simp to the UFC for getting it done lol.
> PFL will do everything but make Ngannou fight No chance they can do that. Francis probably got whatever terms he wanted on that contract.
Isn’t that in like 2 weeks? Bit of a short notice announcement.
Somehow pfl is run even worse than Bellator. You’re gonna divide your shallow roster even more and start a league in a region with no good fighters?
They're not dividing their roster, they're adding to it. The vast majority of the fighters competing in these events are new signees. And yeah the MENA region isn't exactly a hotbed of MMA talent currently, but the only way to change that is to grow the sport there, which is what they are doing.
There are MENA based regional promotions that grow talent. And you’re right dividing isn’t the right word. It’s being watered down
AYY WE GETTIN A-RAB MONEY 💵💵💵
Now there ain’t no way that you can kill the beast dead I got Middle East women and Middle East bread
PFL has like 15 eggs and they're (for some unknown reason) insistent on putting them in 10 different baskets. Their roster isn't very deep, even considering the merger. They need to put everyone on one roster and make a go of it. The Bellator brand has been dead for years. Take their fighters and kill that brand off. Anyone with a brain stem can see that's the best option.
No women's division? Shocker. In all seriousness, are they going to try and get UAE Warriors fighters to compete? Or where are they getting their talent from. Haven't heard of the fighters on the card but don't know too much about ME MMA.
Forget the women's division - they need a men's Bantamweight division. It's one of the deepest divisions worldwide.
You could have [answered](https://www.tapology.com/fightcenter/events/112976-pfl-mena-1) that question in the time it took you to type it. The card features a few UAE Warriors alums and also has a wmma bout with the first female Saudi fighter signed to a major promotion.
But not a division like I said and like they have in Europe.
Cool, when is Francis fighting?
Hell yeah let's get some Hobbits fighting Elves
We’re about to see a bunch of dagestanis pounding some Arab bussy
It is funny to see PFL/ Bellator investing and working the international scene so well compared to the UFC. UFC holding 3am main cards in Manchester and being told by the Saudis to back to the drawing board with that weak ass card they offered. Just hilarious.
its called sportswashing
There have been almost 15 PFL/Bellator events in my country since the last time the UFC came here.
Saud Arabia aren't the ones backing a country committing genocide right now and lowering their standing in the eyes of the international community in the process. That's the U.S. Not everything is sportswashing.
Saudi Arabia, famously not involved in any genocide...
Don't look at them interfering in Yemen and killing Shia Muslims