Bahrain-based mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company BRAVE Combat Federation (BRAVE CF) is gearing up to turn the rising popular sports into a major money spinner a la tennis and heavyweight boxing, with plans to create investment opportunities through its upcoming tournaments, a top official of the company said.
The move is said to be driven by the rising sports fever gripping the entire Middle East in the wake of the forthcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
BRAVE CF, which overtook UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) to become the global leader of the sports early this month, plans to commence its efforts to woo investors with its mega national league matches scheduled for next year.
“Our goal of launching BRAVE National Leagues 2023 will be the key focus in creating a highly lucrative sports investment opportunity through MMA,” Mohammed Shahid, President of Brave CF, told Arabian Business.
Shahid, who is nicknamed as ‘the Hawk’ – said the promotion company would turn MMA into a major investor-friendly one like other popular sports in the Middle East and globally, even as it would continue to empower the grassroots development of the sport.
“The Federation’s vision is to change mixed martial arts from an event business to a sports business,” Shahid said.
This would also help to boost the popularity of MMA fighters globally like their peers in many other sports, besides providing them opportunity to showcase their talents on a global platform, he said.
A brand synonymous with breaking records and barriers, BRAVE CF officially became the most travelled MMA organization on August 6 when it kicked off its league matches in Bonn, Germany.
The Federation has hosted 61 events in 28 countries till date since its inception in 2016.
“We will continue to expand into more countries with massive events as a part of uniting the sport under one global ecosystem,” Shahid said.
Shahid said the MMA promotion company’s future plans will include hosting events not only in the Middle East but the entire MENA region, besides many other parts internationally.
The company has successfully tapped into Central and East Asian countries such as Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and South Korea post-Covid-19.
“Now we have set our target on going back to Southeast Asia next and will soon be hosting events in Indonesia and the Philippines,” Shahid said.
The Federation, which has already dominated the Middle East and European market, plans to continue to host more events in both regions.
Industry experts said the rising popularity of the sport and the enthusiasm created by the FIFA World Cup in the region could help the Bahrain-based Federation to successfully tap investors and sponsors from the Middle East and also some of the global brands.
The sports industry in the Middle East region is projected to bounce back quicker than any other region globally post-pandemic in the wake of the region hosting major events such as Formula E, Formula One Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and now in Jeddah, heavyweight boxing fights – including boxing champion Anthony Joshua’s bout in Saudi Arabia, besides the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
A recent report by PwC Middle East’s sports survey predicted the Middle East industry to grow by 8.7 percent over the next three to five years.
The report said the rapidly evolving sports ecosystem, strong government support and growing commercial maturity were the major contributing factors for raising the Middle East’s profile within the sports industry in recent years, leading to large-scale investment opportunities.
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