The growth of MMA over the last two decades has been incredible, with the global market now valued in the tens of billions. With the sport attracting a young demographic, there’s a chance that its popularity could one day surpass the world’s best-established sports – maybe even the NFL.
There’s one thing that the sport is lacking currently, however, that could help it attract even more fans. Unlike many other major sports, there’s no official, centralized MMA fantasy app. This represents a huge opportunity, as fantasy sports have been proven to massively elevate the sports they are related to and turn passive viewers into dedicated fans.
Fantasy Games Have Helped Various Sports Boom in the Digital Age
There are countless success stories of how fantasy apps have helped sports thrive in the digital age. One of the best examples is the Fantasy Premier League game in the UK, which now has more than 11 million active players. The surge in interest in the game has led to a wealth of content creators on YouTube and social media, who in turn help to promote the division.
The growth of Formula 1 over the last decade could have been helped by the introduction of its dedicated fantasy game as well, which can be played through the official Formula 1 app. The game has been credited with helping to boost engagement in the sport and make people more actively involved. By tapping into the digital crowd in this way, Formula 1 is one of the fastest-growing sports on the planet.
MMA Needs a Centralized Fantasy App
Various websites offer people a chance to play in MMA fantasy leagues, but there’s no official app for the sport run by an organization such as the UFC. There’s no doubt that it’s well-suited to this form of play, though, as every fight produces a huge amount of statistical data that can give fantasy developers inspiration for diverse scoring systems.
If there were a single, dedicated app for the sport, it would be much more accessible to players and would allow them to participate in global leagues throughout the UFC calendar. As has been seen with fantasy apps in other sports, it could also give people a reason to watch fights that they would usually not be interested in. In other words, it gives them some skin in the game.
A Fantasy App Could Bring Non-MMA Fans Into the Fold
Fantasy games also have the power to introduce people to a sport for the first time, and the same thing could happen with an official fantasy app. There could even be special promotions that help attract people to play fantasy MMA in the first place.
This is a technique that works well in other areas of gaming and entertainment. For instance, casino promotions such as free spins deals often encourage players to play games that they wouldn’t normally try. The same thing can be said for console game sales, where some of the discounts can be too hard to turn down.
MMA is clearly crying out for a dedicated fantasy app. Along with helping existing fans stay engaged, it could also benefit the sport in the long run by encouraging more people to watch the fights.