In a move that has sent shockwaves through the sports world, the UFC has inked a jaw-dropping $7.7 billion streaming deal with Paramount Plus, setting a new gold standard for broadcast rights and leaving fans of every major league wondering what might come next.

As the dust settles from this unprecedented agreement, all eyes are turning to the NHL and its commissioner, Gary Bettman.

With hockey’s global reach expanding and its profits steadily climbing, whispers are growing louder: could the NHL be preparing for its own blockbuster media deal?

The league’s recent partnerships with giants like ESPN, TNT, DAZN, and Amazon hint at something big brewing beneath the surface.

But just how close is the NHL to following in the UFC’s footsteps? And what would a multi-billion dollar streaming deal mean for the fans, the sport, and the future of hockey coverage as we know it?

As the competition for sports supremacy heats up, the stakes have never been higher—and the next chapter in this high-stakes media arms race may be just around the corner.

The answers, and the full scope of what’s at play, might surprise you.

Photo credit: Hockey Patrol

The UFC signed a monumental multi-billion dollar deal to broadcast on Paramount, and with the NHL’s growth in recent years could they be next in line?

In what can only be described as one of the most lucrative rights deals in sports history, the UFC announced on Monday that they had a contract in place to stream their events exclusively on Paramount Plus, reaching an exorbitant $7.7-billion dollar deal.

How the UFC’s New Deal Changes the Sports Media Landscape

It’s a seven-year deal at a cost of $1.1-billion a year, but with the UFC and their parent company TKO growing continually with year after year of record-breaking profits, it feels like numbers are just a formality.

The UFC is unquestionably one of the most popular entertainment events in the world, not even just in sports. This deal sets the standard for other leagues and organizations that if they want outreach; they need to pay.

The WWE and Netflix put together a similar deal with a 10-year, $5-billion streaming deal that saw their reach grow exponentially; and WWE is under TKO’s umbrella as well.

It shows that streaming and broadcasting rights are as lucrative as ever, with insane profits leading to more advertisements and therefore even more money.

Why the NHL Could Push for a Massive Raise in Its Next Rights Negotiation

Although the UFC has such a huge reach, they aren’t the only league to make a massive deal. The NHL signed a multi-platform agreement with ESPN and TNT in order to broadcast their games to US viewers, and recently locked in to a 12-year deal with Rogers to show Canadian contests.

But as the league continues to see record-breaking profits themselves, their next rights deal in 2028-29 (at least for the US) could reach at least $5.5-billion or higher.

While it’s still seen as a smaller league compared to the NBA and NFL, they have the majority of the entire world watching; the reach stretches globally, and if the NHL plays their cards right (which so far, they have); it could reach unprecedented levels.

What This Means for Fans and Future NHL Coverage

The NHL already kicked things off with an agreement with DAZN in order to broadcast more internationally, and they’ve already made a deal with Amazon to broadcast on Prime Video for Mondays; so the seeds have been planted.

It’s likely that the NHL would shift their programming to exclusively Prime or DAZN for their online content, and while the TV rights are going to still be there; the lucrative chance to reach such a global audience means it’ll be worth the cost.

Also, this would hopefully reduce or downright eliminate regional blackouts, and we could see an evolution of streaming to replicate what NHL Center Ice tried to do years ago.

The UFC got themselves a whole lot of exposure with their new deal, and the NHL might not be far behind, so long as Gary Bettman has his hands firmly in the mix.