Eurosport India to show first MMA action in PFL deal

Mixed martial arts promotion, the Professional Fighters League, has signed a ‘multi-year’ broadcast rights deal in India with the Discovery-owned Eurosport.

The PFL said that the deal, which marks the first time that MMA will be televised by Eurosport India, is part of its planned global expansion, including a focus on growing the sport in India.

The promotion has kicked off a search for $50m (€42.1m) from outside investors to fund its expansion into overseas markets.

Eurosport will air live PFL regular-season, play-off and championship events, along with classic fights and original programming content produced by the promotion’s PFL Studios media division.

Peter Murray, the PFL’s chief executive, said: “As the second-largest populated country in the world, there is tremendous growth opportunity in India for the Professional Fighters League and MMA. We are actively evaluating talent in the region for opportunities to join the PFL roster and compete for a million-dollar prize.”

Discovery’s sports broadcaster in India was renamed from DSport to Eurosport earlier this year.

The PFL recently launched a free, ad-funded OTT streaming platform, and signed off on a multi-year rights contract in Russia with the Telesport agency.