The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has announced a new sponsor partnership with crypto games and sportsbook brand Stake. The operator has now been named UFC's official partner in Asia.
As part of this partnership, the mixed martial arts organization and the operator will collaborate to improve the UFC betting experience at Stake by providing exclusive promotions and VIP experiences, and producing exclusive social and digital content featuring UFC athletes, including UFC champion Israel Adesanya, who became Stake's first-ever brand ambassador.
"We're thrilled to partner with an exciting and emerging brand like Stake to offer exclusive digital and social content to our fans, as well as an innovative gaming experience," UFC Vice President of Global Partnerships Nick Smith said. "UFC prides itself on being innovators, and Stake is a unique way for fans to experience the action and excitement of UFC."
UFC is the world's premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 625 million fans and 180 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually.
For its part, Stake has seen considerable growth with 45 billion sports gaming bets processed in just 3 years. "All of us at Stake are massive UFC enthusiasts. We are excited to collaborate with such a dominant brand to deliver a one-of-a-kind betting experience and accelerate our global expansion," the company stated.
In recent times, Stake has also entered the world of F1 racing. The Sauber F1 team has been rebranded as the Stake F1 Team, named after the online operator after parting ways with Alfa Romeo at the end of 2023.
Stake will participate in F1 for the 2024 and 2025 seasons. This rebranding is a result of substantial investment and sponsorship by owner Edward Craven. Stake is also already a shirt sponsor for the premier league team Everton FC.