ABU DHABI – UFC fighters aren’t allowed to wager on themselves, according to a recent company memo distributed to athletes and their teams, and promotion president Dana White recently explained why he agrees with the policy.
“Gambling is opening up everywhere in every state,” White told MMA Junkie and other reporters after UFC 280 on Saturday in Abu Dhabi. “People who regulate gambling don’t think it’s a good idea for fighters to be betting on themselves – and I agree. … It just shouldn’t happen. It should never happen. It doesn’t look good – more optics than anything.”
The updated policy on wagering does not prohibit fighters from sponsorship deals with sports books. Many gambling websites pay athletes to post their predictions on social media, often with discount codes, to draw in new users to their books.
