Home Boxing News Amir Khan inks TV deal with MTV

Amir Khan inks TV deal with MTV

Amir Khan

MTV, India’s No. 1 youth brand will be bringing the second season of Super Fight League (SFL) to India. The SFL is the world’s first and only mixed martial arts (MMA) league promoted by British businessman and sports enthusiast Bill Dosanjh and British professional boxer and two-time world champion Amir Khan. With a vision to cement MMA’s position as a mainstream sport with mass appeal across the global sports fraternity, MTV has acquired the exclusive broadcast and digital rights for MTV Super Fight League 2018 across India. MTV Super Fight League will be exclusively aired on MTV from February 2018 onwards.

Having accumulated over 100 million views in 5 years across 67 live televised events, SFL is ranked as the third biggest MMA brand in the world. MMA is the second most viewed sport in India after cricket and the fastest growing combat sport in the world. The franchise-based league that is being organized in association with the All-India Martial Arts Association (AIMMAA) will consist of 96 fighters spread across 8 teams all competing for prize money of INR 4 Crores.

Amir Khan, SFL’s Chairman & two-time boxing world champion said, “Once again the SFL is making history by being the first promotion to partner with MTV to broadcast a full season of exciting live sporting action. We are India’s most exhilarating sports league and are confident that by partnering with MTV season 2 will be bigger and better in every way. Get ready India… and be prepared to witness high octane action unlike anything you’ve seen before”.

Bill Dosanjh, SFL’s CEO & Founder said, “MTV is the channel that resonates strongly with the youth of today and this association will help build the sport amongst the millennial generation and bring more participation from the youth. Having MTV as our broadcast partner will further augment our endeavour to reach the core population of India and make Super Fight League a household name in India. On the investment side, we have spent almost Rs. 250 crores in the last five years and we are looking to invest a further Rs. 200 crores over the next 3 years.”

Commenting on the association with Super Fight League, Raj Nayak, COO, Viacom18 said, “Mixed Martial Arts is a niche sport in India but one that’s gaining a lot of popularity. Through MTV’s association with Super Fight League we aim to popularize the sport and make it accessible to a much larger audience than it currently enjoys – the youth of India. We see a lot of potential in the sport and hope for a longstanding association with the league.”

Formed in 2012 by British-Indian entrepreneur and philanthropist, Bill Dosanjh with an intent to give Indian mixed martial artists a platform to compete and hone their talent in their country of origin whilst bringing in talented fighters from different parts of the world, SFL is a revolutionary approach to combat and was the first MMA organization to feature female fighters. MTV SFL 2018 will promote gender equality and through a fair and unique platform with women having the same influence on the team as men. Season 2 will consist of 16 live shows which will be broadcast over 6 weeks. The league will commence with the group stages where the eight teams will be split in to two groups. Each team is comprised of six players (five male fighters and one female) competing across six different weight categories. The teams within the group compete with each other in 12 league-level matches.

The second season of the leading MMA league will be conducted at MTV SFL Arena, Famous Studios, Mahalaxmi, Mumbai from February 9, 2018 to March 17, 2018.

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