The UFC is back in Paris this week for just the second time.
That means the city is about to come off our list of places around the world the UFC has only visited once. But even without the “City of Lights,” there’s a solid list of cities still in the international one-timers club.
There are dozens of locations in which the UFC has touched down just one time each. Take a look at the ones outside the U.S. (Cities listed alphabetically.)
Bayamon (Puerto Rico)
Venue: Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum
Date: Feb. 16, 1996
Noteworthy: UFC 8 was the first UFC event to take place outside the United States. The card had a superfight tournament that was won by Don Frye with a submission over Gary Goodridge. The event is notable for kicking off the anti-MMA movement popularized by John McCain later that year.
Beijing (China)
Venue: Cadillac Arena
Date: Nov. 24, 2018
Noteworthy: Current heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou knocked out Curtis Blaydes in 45 seconds in the main event on his road back to title contention.
Belem (Brazil)
Venue: Arena Guilherme Paraense
Date: Feb. 3, 2018
Noteworthy: Former light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida outworked Eryk Anders for a split decision in the main event. Valentina Shevchenko bounced back from a bantamweight title loss to Amanda Nunes and won her UFC flyweight debut. Later that year, she won the 125-pound title and has defended it seven straight times since then.
Buenos Aires (Argentina)
Venue: Estadio Mary Terán de Weiss
Date: Nov. 17, 2018
Noteworthy: After four straight decisions to open the card, the fans in Argentina were treated to finishes in seven of the final eight fights, including Santiago Ponzinibbio’s fourth-round knockout of Neil Magny in the welterweight main event.
Busan (South Korea)
Venue: Sajik Arena
Date: Dec. 21, 2019
Noteworthy: The card was the UFC’s second visit to South Korea. In the main event, former featherweight title challenger Chan Sung Jung thrilled his home fans with a first-round TKO of former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. Edgar took the fight on short notice after Brian Ortega pulled out with an injury.
Chiba (Japan)
Venue: Tokyo Bay NK Hall
Date: Nov. 19, 1999
Noteworthy: Chiba makes the list on a bit of a technicality, given its proximity to Tokyo, which has hosted several UFC cards. But the facts are the card took place at Tokyo Bay NK Hall on the grounds of the Tokyo Disney Resort in Chiba. The venue was demolished in 2015. Chiba’s population is a little less than 1 million, so it’s a major city in its own right, regardless of its distance to Tokyo, about 25 miles away. In the main event, Kevin Randleman won the vacant heavyweight title with a decision over Pete Williams.
Cologne (Germany)
Venue: Lanxess Arena
Date: June 13, 2009
Noteworthy: UFC 99 was the promotion’s first visit to Germany, as well as its first trip to mainland Europe. (Previous events in the United Kingdom and Ireland, while still in Europe, were on island countries and not in mainland Europe.) In the main event, former middleweight champion Rich Franklin took a unanimous decision from Wanderlei Silva; the two won $60,000 each for Fight of the Night.
Copenhagen (Denmark)
Venue: Royal Arena
Date: Sept. 28, 2019
Noteworthy: The card was the UFC’s first visit to Denmark. In the main event, Jared Cannonier knocked out Jack Hermansson 27 seconds into the second round.
Curitiba (Brazil)
Venue: Arena da Baixada
Date: May 14, 2016
Noteworthy: The event was the UFC’s fourth stadium show and pulled in more than 45,000 fans. In the headliner, Brazilian heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum was dethroned by Stipe Miocic with a first-round knockout. The card was jam-packed with Brazilian MMA stars, including Ronaldo Souza, who knocked out Vitor Belfort in the co-main event; plus Cris Cyborg, Mauricio Rua, Demian Maia and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. Only two non-Brazilians won on the night: Miocic and Bryan Barberena, who beat Warlley Alves.
Gdansk (Poland)
Venue: Ergo Arena
Date: Oct. 21, 2017
Noteworthy: The card was the UFC’s second visit to Poland and first in more than two years. In the main event, Darren Till knocked out Donald Cerrone, which gave “Cowboy” his third straight loss – and made for the first calendar year in Cerrone’s then 11-year pro career he went winless.
Gold Coast (Australia)
Venue: Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre
Date: Dec. 15, 2012
Noteworthy: In the main event, Ross Pearson knocked out Australia’s George Sotiropoulos in the third round. Their fight was one between opposing coaches from “The Smashes” season of “The Ultimate Fighter.” In the two fights preceding it, Robert Whittaker won the welterweight “TUF: Smashes” tournament, and Norman Parke won the lightweight tournament final.
Krakow (Poland)
Venue: Tauron Arena Krakow
Date: April 11, 2015
Noteworthy: In a rematch of one of the most famous finishes in UFC history, Mirko Cro Cop avenged his loss to Gabriel Gonzaga with a third-round TKO in the main event. When they first fought at UFC 70 in 2007, Gonzaga shocked Cro Cop with a head-kick knockout. The bout was Cro Cop’s return to the UFC after three and a half years outside the promotion.
Liverpool (England)
Venue: Echo Arena
Date: May 27, 2018
Noteworthy: In the city made famous by The Beatles, Darren Till thrilled his home city fans with a unanimous decision over Stephen Thompson in the main event. The win was soured for Till a bit considering he missed the welterweight limit on the scale the day before. Liverpool’s Molly McCann missed weight, as well, and lost to Gillian Robertson on the prelims. But she’s gone 6-2 since then and catapulted to the cusp of stardom with three straight post-fight bonus awards.
Marina Bay (Singapore)
Venue: Marina Bay Sands
Date: Jan. 24, 2014
Noteworthy: The card was the first UFC live event to stream on UFC Fight Pass and not on a traditional broadcast network. In the main event, former Strikeforce champion Tarec Saffiedine outworked Lim Hyun-gyu for a unanimous decision.
Moncton, New Brunswick (Canada)
Venue: Avenir Centre
Date: Oct. 27, 2018
Noteworthy: On his climb up the light heavyweight rankings, Anthony Smith submitted former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir in the main event for his third straight win. It came on the heels of knockouts of ex-champs Rashad Evans and Mauricio Rua earlier in 2018 and got him an eventual title shot against then-champ Jon Jones in March 2019.
Monterrey (Mexico)
Venue: Arena Monterrey
Date: Nov. 21, 2015
Noteworthy: In the main event, Neil Magny took a split decision from Kelvin Gastelum. Magny took the fight on less than three weeks’ notice when Matt Brown pulled out with an injury, and it paid off with a win and $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus check. The card also served as the home for the “TUF: Latin America 2” tournament finals, which were won by Erick Montano at welterweight and Enrique Barzola at lightweight.
Montevideo (Uruguay)
Venue: Antel Arena
Date: Aug. 10, 2019
Noteworthy: In the headliner, Valentina Shevchenko defended her women’s flyweight title for the second time with a unanimous decision over inaugural women’s bantamweight title challenger Liz Carmouche. Vicente Luque took a split call from Mike Perry in the co-feature in a bout that took Fight of the Night honors.
Natal (Brazil)
Venue: Ginásio Nélio Dias
Date: March 23, 2014
Noteworthy: In a rematch of their epic 2011 Fight of the Year bout, Dan Henderson once again beat Mauricio Rua. He took a decision from “Shogun” in their first fight, then stopped him with a third-round TKO in the run-back in front of Rua’s home fans in Brazil. Henderson double-dipped with bonus awards with both Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night for an extra $100,000.
Newcastle upon Tyne (England)
Venue: Metro Radio Arena
Date: Jan. 19, 2008
Noteworthy: B.J. Penn beat Joe Stevenson with a second-round submission to win the vacant lightweight title in the main event. That belt was vacant after then-champ Sean Sherk tested positive for steroids and the California commission upheld his suspension. The victory made Penn a two-division UFC champion. He won the welterweight title in 2004, though he was stripped of it when he left the promotion in a contract squabble.
Nottingham (England)
Venue: Capital FM Arena
Date: Sept. 29, 2012
Noteworthy: In the headliner, Stefan Struve beat future heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic with a second-round TKO. The pair won $40,000 each for Fight of the Night.
Oberhausen (Germany)
Venue: Konig Pilsener Arena
Date: Nov. 13, 2010
Noteworthy: The card aired in the U.S. on a tape-delay basis on Spike TV. It was the UFC’s second card in Germany and wasn’t allowed to be broadcast in the country because of TV bans against that level of violence. In the headliner, Yushin Okami outworked Nate Marquardt for a unanimous decision.
Paris (France)
Venue: Accor Arena
Date: Sept. 3, 2022
Noteworthy: Paris will leave this list at the end of the week after UFC Fight Night 226, which goes down a year after the promotion’s debut in one of the most famous cities in the world.
Porto Alegre (Brazil)
Venue: Ginasio Gigantinho
Date: Feb. 22, 2015
Noteworthy: In the main event, former heavyweight champion Frank Mir knocked out Antonio Silva just 100 seconds into the first round. Mir picked up a performance bonus for the finish. The card, which featured a Brazilian in every fight, saw non-Brazilians go 7-4. In addition, 10 of 11 betting underdogs won their fights. Online sportsbook Bovada reportedly had to pay out a return of nearly $50,000 on a $1 parlay bet filled with underdogs.
Prague (Czech Republic)
Venue: O2 Arena
Date: Feb. 23, 2019
Noteworthy: In the UFC’s first visit to the Czech Republic, Thiago Santos knocked out future light heavyweight champion in the third round in the main event. Stefan Struve submitted Marcos Rogerio de Lima in the heavyweight co-main event.
Quebec City, Quebec (Canada)
Venue: Colisee Pepsi
Date: April 16, 2014
Noteworthy: In a middleweight grudge match, Tim Kennedy beat future champion Michael Bisping with a dominant unanimous decision in the main event. The co-feature was a fight between TUF: Nations coaches Patrick Cote (Canada) and Kyle Noke (Australia), which was won by Cote. Elias Theodorou beat Sheldon Westcott to win the middleweight “TUF” season, and Chad Laprise beat Olivier Aubin-Mercier to win the welterweight tournament.
Saint Petersburg (Russia)
Venue: Yubileyny Sports Palace
Date: April 20, 2019
Noteworthy: The card was the UFC’s second visit to Russia in less than a year. In the main event, Alistair Overeem knocked out home fan favorite Aleksei Oleinik in hte first round. Russia’s Islam Makhachev, who will vie for the lightweight title in November, won for the fifth straight time and picked up his first and still only post-fight bonus with a decision win over Arman Tsarukyan.
Santiago (Chile)
Venue: Movistar Arena
Date: May 19, 2018
Noteworthy: At the UFC’s first visit to Chile, Kamaru Usman continued his ascent up the welterweight ladder with a unanimous decision win over Demian Maia, who stepped in on a month’s notice when Santiago Ponzinibbio pulled out with an injury. Future flyweight champion Brandon Moreno was dominated by Alexandre Pantoja on the prelims and found himself fighting outside the UFC after that loss before his return and, ultimately, title resurgence.
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Canada)
Venue: SaskTel Centre
Date: Aug. 23, 2015
Noteworthy: The UFC’s first visit to Saskatchewan was headlined by a pair of future champions. Future featherweight champ Max Holloway stopped future lightweight titleholder Charles Oliveira with a first-round TKO when Oliveira suffered a throat injury.
Seoul (South Korea)
Venue: Olympic Gymnastics Arena
Date: Nov. 28, 2015
Noteworthy: The UFC’s first trip to South Korea featured an ex-champ atop the lineup. Former WEC and UFC lightweight titleholder Benson Henderson was supposed to fight Thiago Alves, but Alves pulled out two weeks before the card. Jorge Masvidal stepped in on short notice and lost a split decision in the five-round headliner.
Shanghai (China)
Venue: Mercedes Benz Arena
Date: Nov. 25, 2017
Noteworthy: The card was the UFC’s first on mainland China after three previous events in Macau. Two weeks before the fight, Anderson Silva was pulled from the main event due to a failed drug test. He was replaced by Michael Bisping against Kelvin Gastelum. Gastelum won the headliner with a first-round knockout.
Shenzhen (China)
Venue: Shenzhen Universiade Sports Centre Arena
Date: Aug. 31, 2019
Noteworthy: In the main event, Zhang Weili thrilled her home fans when she knocked out champion Jessica Andrade in just 42 seconds to win the women’s strawweight title. Her finish was one of just four on the card, including “The Leech,” China’s own Li Jingliang, who knocked out Elizeu Zaleski dos Sanatos in the co-main event.
Uberlandia (Brazil)
Venue: Ginasio Municipal Tancredo Neves
Date: Nov. 8, 2014
Noteworthy: The UFC touched down in Uberlandia in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais for the first time after prior events in Belo Horizonte. In the headliner, Ovince Saint Preux finished former light heavyweight champion Mauricio Rua in just 34 seconds. His knockout was the only finish on the main card and one of just four on the entire show. The curtain jerker fight was a Colby Covington submission of Wagner Silva in what was Covington’s second UFC fight.
Yokohama (Japan)
Venue: Yokohama Arena
Date: Dec. 21, 1997
Noteworthy: Mike Goldberg made his first appearance as the UFC’s play-by-play voice. It was the UFC’s first event outside the U.S. or U.S. territories. In the main event, Randy Courute won the heavyweight title with a decision over champion Maurice Smith. The card also featured wins by Vitor Belfort and Frank Shamrock.
Zagreb (Croatia)
Venue: Arena Zagreb
Date: April 10, 2016
Noteworthy: At the UFC’s first event in Croatia, former heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos dominated Ben Rothwell and swept the scorecards for a unanimous decision in the main event. The main card also featured knockout wins by heavyweights Derrick Lewis over Gabriel Gonzaga and current champ Francis Ngannou, who got a doctor’s stoppage TKO against Curtis Blaydes. Future light heavyweight champ Jan Blachowicz beat Igor Pokrajac with a unanimous decision, as well.
