TKO Group Holdings, the parent company of the UFC, has reached a $335 million settlement in two antitrust cases filed by former fighters in the organization, according to TKO’s disclosure to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The arrangement was reached on March 13, and the payments will be made over time rather than in one big sum and will be tax deductible.
Cung Le and Kajan Johnson, two former UFC fighters, filed two class-action lawsuits in 2014 and 2021, respectively. Several other fighters’ names were mentioned in the suits.
One of the lawsuits said “the UFC has engaged in an illegal scheme to eliminate competition from would-be rival MMA Promoters by systematically preventing them from gaining access to resources critical to successful MMA Promotions, including by imposing extreme restrictions on UFC Fighters’ ability to fight for would-be rivals during and after their tenure with the UFC.”
The settlement terms must be submitted to the court for approval.
“We are pleased with the settlement and will disclose more when we file with the Court in 45-60 days,” the Mixed Martial Arts Fighters Association, managed by one of the attorneys, wrote on X (previously Twitter).
A UFC representative issued a statement that read, “We are pleased to have reached an agreement to settle all claims asserted in both the Le and Johnson class action lawsuits, bringing litigation to a close and benefiting all parties. The final terms of the settlement will be submitted to the court for approval.”
