UFC Turns Spectators into Active Prediction Experts

Polymarket Teams Up with UFC to Offer Live Crypto-Based Fan Predictions

TKO Group Holdings Inc. (NYSE: TKO), the parent company of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Zuffa Boxing, has entered into a partnership with Polymarket, a prediction market platform, to bring real-time fan prediction features to its broadcasts and live events. This partnership,

, represents the first instance of a major sports league embedding prediction market technology directly into its live fan experience, aiming to shift viewers from passive spectators to active participants.

Through this multi-year partnership, Polymarket will introduce a live scoreboard during UFC events,

. The scoreboard will act as a "data-driven storytelling layer," supplementing traditional commentary by showing shifts in fan sentiment and momentum in real time. Polymarket will also roll out a social media series, Matchup Predictions – Who's Next?, and sparking speculative conversations on its platform.

This collaboration will also cover Zuffa Boxing, the new professional boxing venture launching in January 2026. Polymarket will

, bringing in-arena activations and digital content to boost fan involvement. This initiative fits with TKO’s broader goal of expanding its sports entertainment portfolio, starting in 2026.

The announcement has already influenced TKO’s stock,

after the news broke. Polymarket, which returned to the U.S. in beta after resolving a 2022 CFTC enforcement action, is . The platform has , using its technology to visualize collective expectations during live sports.

This partnership comes as regulators show increased interest in sports prediction markets. ProphetX, another startup in the sector, has

and Derivatives Clearing Organization, aiming to become the first regulated U.S. exchange for sports event contracts. While ProphetX’s RFQ Parlay Mechanism targets institutional-style trading, by integrating with social media and live broadcasts.

TKO’s Ariel Emanuel highlighted the partnership’s ability to “open up a new level of fan engagement,” noting that prediction markets offer a non-competitive, data-centric way to interact with sports, differing from traditional betting.

makes it a perfect fit for prediction markets, allowing fans to “see global expectations shift with every round.”

This agreement reflects a larger movement of prediction markets into mainstream entertainment. Polymarket has recently been integrated with Google Finance and Yahoo Finance, and has also

. At the same time, rivals such as DraftKings and CME Group are exploring regulated sports betting contracts, indicating a competitive and rapidly changing market.