Unveiled on Tuesday, the deal will see ONE Championship events including the ONE Fight Night series — which airs on Amazon Prime Video in North America — and ancillary programming carried by Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland.

Terms of the deal were not announced, but it will launch in January 2024 with ONE Fight Night 18: Superlek vs. Mahmoudi airing live on Jan. 14. ONE programming will be shown on Sky Sports digital and broadcast platforms.

ONE officials declined to comment when asked about the financials of the deal by Cageside Press.

“For years, our UK fans have been clamoring for ONE to be broadcast on one of the region’s major networks,” ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong said in a press release announcing the deal. “Today, I’m excited to announce a new partnership with Sky Sports, the premier broadcaster for live sports in the UK and one of the most well-known sports networks in the world. This deal marks an important milestone for the celebration of martial arts and the continued expansion of ONE Championship’s global footprint.”

ONE Championship has evolved from a mixed martial arts promotion into a multi-discipline format, with Muay Thai, Kickboxing, Submission Grappling, and occasionally boxing matches being held alongside MMA fights. Muay Thai stars Jonathan Haggerty and Liam Harrison, both hailing from the UK, currently compete under the ONE banner.

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At long last, MMA fans in the U.K. will be able to watch Bellator MMA events live. On Friday, the promotion announced via press release that it had entered into a broadcast deal with Sky Sports. The arrangement will see no fewer than 20 U.S. and international events broadcast live in the U.K. and Ireland. The new deal is in addition to a recent deal with Channel 5 in the U.K. Channel 5 will air a number of events from Bellator’s European fight series live, starting with Bellator: Newcastle.

The Sky Sports deal will begin with Bellator 216 next Saturday, which sees Michael ‘Venom’ Page take on Paul Daley — a.k.a. two of the biggest British stars in mixed martial arts.

Bellator CEO Scott Coker was quoted in Friday’s press release as saying that “this is a groundbreaking partnership for MMA in the U.K. and Ireland, and we are thrilled to finally bring LIVE Bellator events to our passionate fanbase there. We have worked diligently to find the right network in the U.K. and Sky Sports will undoubtedly deliver for our viewers. I’m excited that our fans overseas will now be able to be part of our events that take place around the globe and witness some of the best athletes in the sport today.”

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