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<h3><a href="/go=news.detail&gid=437414" target="_blank">
Huge day for African MMA
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<p>When the UFC signed a seven-year deal with FOX it was widely hailed as a breakthough for the sport entering the mainstream in the USA. Now EFC Africa has signed a deal with SuperSport, that likewise has massive implications. SuperSport is so dominant on the continent that it does not have an exact parallel in the USA, but it would be something like ESPN and CNN combined.</p>
Although African companies are often assumed to be second rate, this is a false assumption. Budweiser, for example, is owned by a South African company.
SuperSport is in many regards the leading sports content provider on the planet.
From the official release:
Today SuperSport, Africa’s sports broadcasting giant, announced a three-year broadcast partnership with EFC AFRICA, the leading Mixed Martial Arts organization on the African continent. The conclusion of this agreement is a groundbreaking moment for African MMA.
The partnership comes off the back of the unparalleled growth of EFC AFRICA since its inception in 2009, now reaching 130 million homes daily on networks across the US, Canada, Middle-East, Africa and Europe and the continually growing mass interest in the sport of MMA.
“This agreement has been long in the making,” says Happy Ntshingila, Chief Executive of SuperSport. “EFC AFRICA has quickly established itself as a world class sporting organisation, all the while singlehandedly pioneering the sport of MMA on the continent. Our partnership with EFC AFRICA represents our cognisance of what is widely considered the fastest growing sport in the world.”
“This is the perfect partnership for us and our fans, and one which the fans have been wanting for a long time,” adds EFC AFRICA president Cairo Howarth. “We are now able to offer EFC AFRICA fans a new level of sports broadcasting, as well as reach an entirely new fan base through Africa’s biggest sports network.”
The new partnership will see hours of dedicated EFC AFRICA programming per day on SuperSport, as well as a guaranteed 10 live primetime events per year.
“SuperSport is all about innovation and excitement," said Ntshingila." MMA is fresh and vibrant and we look forward to showcasing the very best of it on our various platforms.”
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