Dana White was in awe of the Las Vegas Sphere when he saw U2 perform at the $2.3 billion venue. The CEO of UFC had previously expressed his desire to hold a UFC event at the venue, and in the press conference after UFC 295, he had some updates on the event.
In the press conference, Dana White confirmed that the Las Vegas Sphere has been booked for the 2024 UFC’s Mexican Independence Day event. The Independence Day of the North American country is on September 16, 2024, and the weekend before the holiday seems like the perfect date for the highly anticipated event.
Dana White CONFIRMS at the post fight press conference that The Sphere in Las Vegas has been BOOKED for the 2024 Mexican Independence Day card 👀 pic.twitter.com/ingH29K8Xb
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) November 12, 2023
Dana White commented on the event: “We are already working on creative for the show. It will be a massive challenge and I love every minute of it. Can’t wait to dive into this thing.” The CEO was excited about the venue and the challenges he had to face to organize the event, including putting the octagon ring in the Sphere.
White concluded by stating, “I am gonna put on the greatest live combat sport show anybody has ever seen.” White has previously stated that he has a great relationship with the guys who own the Sphere. He expressed that MSG does everything right.
Challenges for UFC at Las Vegas Sphere
Madison Square Garden Entertainment started the construction of the Sphere back in 2019. The spherical structure is 366 feet tall and 516 feet wide. The venue is wrapped by a 580,000-square-foot LED screen and can hold around 20,000 people.
Since its opening, the Sphere has been facing different extremes. On one end, the first event was the performance by the iconic band U2. The event received worldwide praise from fans and experts. On the other end, the internal situation around the Sphere is quite different.
Dana White vs boxing.
Apparently the UFC is putting their bid in to try to be the first combat sports show to hold a big event there.
Boxing is also trying to do it first. They’re both hitting up the Sphere to see who gets it.#UFC #UFC294 #MMA #Boxing #Dana pic.twitter.com/CljRd7CGeH
— Abe (@AbeMorales209) October 11, 2023
In its first financial quarter ending on September 30, Sphere reported a loss of around $100 million ($98.4 million). Before the losses were reported, the CFO of Sphere Entertainment, Gautam Ranj, also resigned from his post, having held that role for around 11 months.
The losses and resignations of key personnel raised some eyebrows among the experts. These can be early signs of internal instability, which might be red flags for the UFC and Dana White. Among other challengers, UFC has to figure out how to fully utilize the Sphere background of the LED screen for their event. The focus is usually at the center of the Octagon ring.
The UFC is known for facing every difficult challenge head-on. They were among the few entertainment businesses that didn’t stop during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Sphere is the new challenge for the MMA promotion, and as per the comments from Dana White after UFC 295, the company is ready for it.