The glittering neon lights of Las Vegas have long symbolized the epicenter of fight sports.
It is the place where an aging Muhammad Ali lost his splendor, where Mike Tyson bit Evander Holyfield’s ear (twice), and where Floyd Mayweather showcased his decade of dominance. It is also the place where Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighters like Conor McGregor became household names.
However, Gulf states like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – armed with vast resources and endless ambition – have emerged as formidable contenders, positioning themselves to potentially usurp Las Vegas’ coveted title as the world’s ‘fight capital’.
Last week, the UFC hosted its latest premium live event in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. The event, which saw lightweight champion Islam Makhachev defend his title against featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski, was the 19th event held in the region since 2010.
Shortly ahead of the most recent event in Abu Dhabi, the UFC announced that it had extended its partnership with the Emirati capital through 2028, emphasizing the mutually beneficial partnership between the Las Vegas based organization and Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT).
“Bringing UFC to Abu Dhabi each year has proved hugely popular, with MMA fans coming to the emirate from all over the world to watch the biggest and best fights in the sport,” Saood Abdulaziz Al Hosani, undersecretary of DCT Abu Dhabi, said in the official press release, adding that “Abu Dhabi has established itself as a world capital for combat sports.”
The UFC is only one facet of Abu Dhabi’s combat sports strategy. Over the past 25 years, the UAE capital has continued to establish itself as a global hub for submission grappling. The country classifies Brazilian jiu-jitsu as its national sport, incorporating it into school curriculums, as well as in military and police forces. Abu Dhabi is also home to some of the most prestigious jiu-jitsu tournaments, including the ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship.
Abu Dhabi’s investment in jiu-jitsu was not a random occurrence. The sport was popularized by Sheikh Tahnoun Bin Zayed al Nahyan – the son of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan, the founder of the UAE – who discovered the grappling art as a university student in San Diego. He later returned to the UAE and went on to found the ADCC, as well as several other combat sports federation.
Often regarded as the guiding force behind combat sports in the UAE, Sheikh Tahnoun is also the deputy ruler of Abu Dhabi, chair’s one of the country’s biggest sovereign wealth funds, and is a key figure behind the country’s coordinated spyware attacks on dissidents and political targets. His central role in shaping the UAE’s combat sports strategy underscores the country’s adept use of sports as a means of exercising influence, mirroring the manner in which his younger brother, Sheikh Mansour, exerts authority through his ownership of the English Premier League team, Manchester City.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia – the UAE’s primary regional rival – has also emerged as a lucrative home for fight sports. Over the past few years, the kingdom has hosted some of the boxing’s biggest showdowns, including the heavyweight championship fight between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk.
This weekend, Saudi Arabia is poised to launch its winter festival, Riyadh Season, with a crossover fight that pits WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury against the former UFC champion Francis Ngannou. Moreover, the kingdom has successfully secured the hosting rights for the highly anticipated heavyweight title unification showdown between Fury and Usyk, which is set to serve as the concluding highlight of Riyadh Season in 2024.
This series of high-profile fights has helped solidify the kingdom’s status as a premier destination for boxing.
Saudi Arabia also made its first significant investment in MMA earlier this year when it purchased a minority stake valued at $100m in the US-based Professional Fighters League (PFL). Under the terms of the deal, the PFL will establish a regional tournament that will be headquartered in Saudi Arabia. The kingdom is also set to stage its first-ever UFC event in 2024, in conjunction with Riyadh Season.
Saudi Arabia is also currently hosting the 2023 edition of the World Combat Games, an international multi-sport festival featuring 16 different combat sports and martial arts.
Nevertheless, as Las Vegas faces emerging challenges to its decades of combat sports dominance, the gambling oasis has rebranded itself as a global sports hub, attracting some of the country’s leading sports events and franchises.
In 2020, Las Vegas secured its first NFL franchise when the Raiders moved from Oakland to Allegiant Stadium – the second most expensive stadium in the world that will also play host to the Super Bowl in February. The city’s NHL team, the Golden Knights, and their WNBA team, the Las Vegas Aces, also won both championships this year. Even LeBron James has expressed interest in bringing an NBA team to Vegas after he transitions from player to prospective team owner.
And next month, the Strip will be transformed into a Formula 1 track, making Las Vegas home to the biggest Grand Prix race in North America to date.
Multiple factors contribute to the appeal of Vegas as a prime destination for sports teams. The city has enjoyed a long-standing reputation as a global tourist hotspot, luring visitors from every corner of the globe who seek to immerse themselves in its entertainment, culinary offerings and overall opulence. In 2022, a year that saw Vegas play host to significant events such as the NFL Pro Bowl, the NFL draft, and numerous headline-grabbing concerts, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported that 38.8m visitors flocked to the city.
Las Vegas is also set to benefit from the surge in legalized sports betting sweeping across the United States. What was once considered a controversial practice has seen several major sports leagues establishing partnerships with sports book operators. This shift in perception has paved the way for professional franchises to establish a permanent presence in Sin City.
Consequently, as Las Vegas faces the possibility of relinquishing its title as the fight capital of the world, with affluent patrons like Saudi Arabia and the UAE displaying a heightened enthusiasm for combat sports, the city seems to be actively shifting its focus. Las Vegas is redirecting its attention from niche, violence-oriented sports toward the broader realm of global sports and entertainment brands, a transition indicative of its evolving priorities.
As Las Vegas follows the shifting tides of an ever-changing sports world, Gulf states are stepping into the spotlight, ready to seize the opportunity and claim their place as the new epicenter of combat sports.
