Did UFC Freedom 250 event at White House get Super Bowl-type numbers?
· Yahoo Sports
Secretary of State Marco Rubio predicted a billion people would be watching the UFC Freedom 250 event held at the White House on June 14.
Visit casino-promo.biz for more information.
Rubio missed the mark by approximately 980 million people.
Viewership on Paramount+ reached 17 million across the U.S. and Latin America during UFC Freedom 250, according to Paramount+, citing Nielsen and Adobe Analytics in a press release issued Thursday June 18.
That shattered the Paramount+ record for highest viewership for an exclusive live event, according to the subscription-based streaming service, which said it has streamed thousands of exclusive live events since it launched in 2021.
The previous record was five million viewers for UFC 324 in January, when Paramount+ made its debut as the UFC’s streaming home. Paramount+ paid $7.7 billion over seven years for that exclusive right.
UFC seeks Super Bowl numbers
Expectations were high for the unprecedented seven-fight card on the South Lawn of the White House.
"We’re expecting Super Bowl-type numbers for this fight,’’ UFC CEO Dana White told UFC on TNT Sports.
The 2026 Super Bowl was watched by an estimated 125 million viewers, according to Nielsen. That total included viewership figures from NBC, Peacock, Telemundo, NBC Sports Digital and NFL+.
Two days before the event, Rubio chimed in during an appearance with White.
“A billion people all over the world will be watching America celebrate its 250th birthday with the White House in the background and some of the best athletes in the world in that Octagon,” he said.
The prediction was beyond optimistic. Paramount+ has about 80 million subscribers.
UFC Freedom 250 was available exclusively on Paramount+ only in the U.S. and Latin America. UFC will announce viewership numbers outside the U.S. and Latin America next week and Paramount+ provided no estimate.
Of the 17 million viewers reached June 14, 15.26 million came from the United States and 1.67 million came from Latin America.
Every bout on the seven-fight card ended in a knockout or technical knockout. The main event was considered an all-time classic, with Justin Gaethje dethroning Ilia Topuria by TKO. Topuria's corner stopped the lightweight title bout after the fourth round, with one round left to go.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: UFC viewership figures for massive White House event released