First premium Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) league
featuring top African athletes, with all events held across the
continent, and available via leading regional media
partners
MMA Superstar Francis Ngannou to serve as PFL
Africa Chairman
Helios Sports & Entertainment Group
invests to become strategic partner in PFL Africa
PFL Africa will be Africa's most accessible sports league across
linear, digital and mobile platforms upon Q2 2025 launch
DOWNLOAD PFL AFRICA PRESS CONFERENCE ASSET HERE
LAGOS,
Nigeria, July 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The
Professional Fighters League (PFL), the fastest growing and most
innovative sports league in the world, announced the launch of PFL
Africa, which joins PFL Europe and PFL MENA as part of PFL's
network of regional leagues that is becoming the Champions League
of MMA. PFL Africa will introduce a thrilling Regular Season,
Playoffs and Championship sport-season format featuring top African
fighters with all events hosted on the continent.
In a groundbreaking partnership, Helios Sports &
Entertainment Group has made an investment and will hold a stake in
the promotion, of which MMA superstar Francis Ngannou will serve as
Chairman. The newest PFL league will launch in the second quarter
of 2025 across linear, digital and mobile platforms.
"The Professional Fighters League is excited to announce PFL
Africa, the third international fight franchise as we continue on
our path to becoming the Champions League of MMA," said PFL CEO
Peter Murray. "Africa is home to some of the greatest
fighters in the world, including our league Chairman Francis Ngannou, and some of the greatest fans
in the sport. PFL Africa aims to serve the great fans with premium
content while strengthening the PFL global footprint in what has
for too long been an underserved market. Alongside our great
investment and broadcast partners we cannot wait to kick off PFL
Africa league action in 2025."
"I am excited and honored to serve as Chairman of PFL Africa, a
league that will shape the very foundation of African MMA," said
Francis Ngannou, Chairman PFL Africa. "As we have seen there is a
great wealth of talent in Africa
just waiting to be given a global stage. I am so very proud to give
back to my homeland and to provide great content to a region with
such a passionate and diverse fanbase."
"African talent has had disproportionate success on the global
MMA stage and MMA currently has a scarcity of events despite
significant demand, creating a huge opportunity for growth as young
Africans consume more digital content on their devices," commented
Tope Lawani, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Helios Investment
Partners. "We are looking forward to partnering with the PFL, a
world class organization, and with Francis Ngannou, who is a
manifestation of the success of African talent on a global stage.
HSEG is a committed partner of choice for global blue-chip sports
and entertainment properties in Africa such as the PFL. This marks our fourth
investment following our successful partnership with the NBA in the
NBA Africa, our investment in global entertainment company The
Malachite Group with a portfolio that includes Afro Nation and
Piano People and our investment in Zaria Group, a multi-purpose
venue management business. We see several areas of direct synergies
between PFL Africa and HSEG's existing unique portfolio and we are
excited by the opportunities such collaboration can bring to the
continent."
PFL is the only organization in MMA with the sports-season
format, where individual fighters compete in a regular season,
playoffs, and championship each year. The combined roster of PFL
and Bellator boasts 30% of its fighters independently world-ranked
in the top 25 of their respective weight-class. PFL has an
expansive global vision for the sport and is building the
"Champions League of MMA" with PFL Europe, PFL MENA, and more
international leagues in development. PFL leads in technology and
innovation, with its proprietary PFL SmartCage, powering fight
analytics, real-time betting, AI scoring, and a
next-generation viewing experience. PFL is available on ESPN/ESPN+
in the U.S., DAZN in Canada and
Europe and broadcast and streamed
in 160 countries with 20 premium media distribution partners.
ABOUT PROFESSIONAL FIGHTERS LEAGUE
Professional Fighters League (PFL) is a global powerhouse in MMA
and the fastest-growing sports league world-wide. PFL has five live
fight franchises, offering year-round content: PFL League Season,
PFL PPV Super Fights, PFL Challenger Series, PFL International
Leagues, and Bellator. Founded in 2018, PFL is backed by major
blue-chip investors including SRJ, Ares, Knighthead, Luxor Capital,
Waverley Capital, Elysian Park Ventures, and numerous NBA, MLB,
NHL, and MLS team owners. MMA is the growth sport business of this
decade, with 650 million fans worldwide, the youngest audience
demographic, and true global revenue streams. PFLmma.com; Instagram
(@PFLmma); Twitter (@PFLMMA); Facebook (/PFLmma)
ABOUT HELIOS SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT GROUP
Helios Sports & Entertainment Group ("HSEG") is a dedicated
permanent platform built to capitalize on Africa's unique demographic profile and global
technological advancements by investing in brands, companies and
assets in the African sports and entertainment ecosystem. Launched
in 2021 by Helios Investment Partners, the largest Africa-focused private investment firm, HSEG
is the partner of choice in Africa
for global blue-chip sports and entertainment properties.
HSEG's unique portfolio of assets includes the NBA Africa and
the Basketball Africa League ("BAL"), a successful partnership with
the NBA, The Malachite Group ("TMG"), a global music focused
entertainment company operating brands such as Afro Nation, Piano
People and Lit Everywhere, and Zaria Group, a specialist in
multi-purpose venue management, development and commercialization
in Africa.
HSEG invests in the growing global reliance on African talent.
By investing and developing the African sports and entertainment
sector at scale and providing African talent with global
opportunities, HSEG is uniquely positioned to deliver growth with
impact.
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SOURCE Professional Fighters League (PFL)