MMA is one of the most-watched extreme sports in the world, with top-billed fights garnering worldwide attention, bringing in millions of dollars in sponsorships and wagering, and providing entertainment on a global scale.
Casinos have long been the home of gaming entertainment, and now the increase in players with online casinos like Bally Casino offering games like Megaways slots. Then people can enjoy casino resorts along the Strip in Las Vegas host all sorts of entertainment to give their guests the best experience. Top musical acts, comedians and magicians can all be found performing in Vegas, as well as circus acts, sporting events, boxing matches, and of course, big MMA fight nights.
The relationship between the MMA world and casinos is multifaceted, starting with providing a place for the fights to take place, and moving onto financial entanglement that is mutually beneficial.
Casinos tend to be large buildings, or collections of buildings, especially in Vegas or Macau. These supersized resorts encompass state of the art casino facilities, but also hotels, spas, gyms, and even shopping malls in some cases.
Most casinos have some sort of entertainment space that might be used for performances – Cirque du Soleil are regular performer at different casinos on The Strip, as are magicians like Penn and Teller – so they already have the space for other forms of entertainment.
The high-octane entertainment of the casino tables and slot machines is matched (and in some cases exceeded) by the high stakes violence that takes place in the Octagon. By providing MMA companies like the UFC with a good venue to host their fights, the casino can provide a captive audience and betting opportunities. Fighters can get involved with their fans, whether that is through meet-and-greets, or even on-site fight workshops.
Conversely, for the casino, they get access to new customers, with the opportunity to provide dining, other entertainment, a place for attendees to stay, and excellent advertising.
MMA fights are the perfect events to place wagers on. From the outcome of a specific fight to the details of how many knockouts there will be, how long a match will last, and whether the title holder will lose the belt, sports wagering comes into its own when it comes to MMA.
Casinos can provide the perfect setting for this, whether they are hosting the live event or not. When the fight is in their casino, they are best placed to provide a wagering service and can make the most of the house edge for the patrons – they aren’t going to go elsewhere to place a bet. The casinos that are not hosting can provide a comfortable bar to show the fights as well as collecting the bets – increasing the sense of excitement and suspense.
Casinos can make the most of this interest in the online space as well, especially now the laws around online sports wagering in the US have relaxed. For us in the UK, it has never been easier to place a bet on the outcome of many MMA tournaments.
Casinos have always had an excellent relationship with sports, from sponsoring football teams across the world and especially in the UK, to even sponsoring matches and tournaments in different sports, too.
By sponsoring certain fighter or events, casinos can create huge ad campaigns that ride on the coattails of the popularity of their chosen fighters or companies. While it involves a financial investment, the returns from their name being used in promotional material is the whole point of getting involved.
One of the biggest deals in sponsorship history for MMA is the latest agreement signed in January 2025 between SPRIBE and TKO. As the creators behind many of the casino games, including slots and table games – and most famously, Aviator, a game that players worldwide wagered $14 million worldwide in December 2024 – SPRIBE is already a powerhouse in the casino scene, and this deal could see them getting access to an even bigger audience.
For those who don’t know, TKO is the parent company of the world-famous UFC, but also the WWE as well, getting both sides of the fight market (the rough realism of MMA and the glamorous storytelling of the WWE) in their campaign.
While Dana White is reportedly not welcome in many Vegas casinos (because he is too good at blackjack, according to some sources), there is no indication that the symbiotic relationship between casinos and the MMA is going to cool any time soon.
Many hundreds of thousands of extreme sports fans will have the opportunity to not only visit Sin City but also to see one of the most violent, exciting, and adrenaline-fuelled sports while they are there, lining the pockets of the casino resorts and the sponsored fighters and events and keeping the sport financially viable, too.