Powered by the UFC, TKO outperformed analysts’ expectations and led to a second upgrade in its guidance for the year.
TKO’s third-quarter earnings revealed a 21% increase in overall revenues, reporting $1.360 billion for the July 1 – September 30 period across WWE, UFC, and IMG. That translates to net income of $277.9 million, which was a 69% improvement over the same quarter in 2025.
IMG contributions featured reported revenue of $391.3 million and an 89% increase in adjusted EBITDA stemming from the FIFA World Cup over the summer.
The performance led to a second revision of guidance for 2026, as its revenue target has been upgraded from $5.790 billion to $5.830, and adjusted EBITDA now estimated at $2.315 billion this year.
UFC’s business has skyrocketed due to the massive rights increase through Paramount, which went into effect at the start of the year with an average annual value worth $1.1 billion over seven years. Due to the new deal, media rights increased from $200.5 million in Q3 of 2025 to $332.8 million this year.
The quarter saw three numbered events, including the gigantic UFC 329 card with Conor McGregor’s first fight in five years against Max Holloway. The July 11 event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas achieved a record gate of more than $26.4 million. In the release, they noted that the event “had a higher cost profile compared to other numbered events and aligns with the increased revenues from the event”) and cite “higher financial incentive package revenue compared to the prior year period”
Additionally, the UFC held international Fight Night events in Serbia, UAE, France, and Shanghai along with Fight Nights in Sacramento and Arizona to raise its live events section to $79.6 million for the quarter, up from $43.6 million in the prior year.
The partnerships and marketing generated $91.3 million (up from $70.8 million) while its consumer products and licensing continues to lag at $15.5 million for the quarter (up from $10.3). The latter category is the one area where WWE still has a commanding lead over UFC.
WWE did not have the same success over the third quarter, with revenues falling by 1% to $399.3 million. The key factors included an underperforming pair of SummerSlam shows and the promotion holding three fewer premium live events than last year’s third quarter.
The live events section saw a drop of 30% from $82.5 million in 2025 to $57.5 million. Last year, WWE held the women’s Evolution show along with two nights of SummerSlam, Clash in Paris, and Wrestlepalooza in the third quarter. This year, it only ran two nights of SummerSlam of its main roster offerings. Attendance was down significantly for the two nights in Minneapolis this past summer compared to SummerSlam at MetLife Stadium last year.
WrestleTix reports 108,679 tickets distributed for the two nights of SummerSlam in 2025 compared with 69,870 in 2026.
TKO acknowledged in the release, “The decrease in live events and hospitality revenue was primarily due to a decrease in ticket sales revenue related to the mix and timing of events including three fewer Main Roster Premium Live Events and lower sales for SummerSlam, compared to the prior year period”. Despite this acknowledgement in the release, Mark Shapiro denied the notions that there’s a downward trend in WWE ticket sales referring to those beliefs as “ghosts”.
Media rights brought in $255.8 million, which was up from $248.9 million as WWE is in its second year of its deal with Netflix.
Partnerships and marketing continue to show growth with a rise from $39.9 million in Q3 of 2025 to $51.0 million this year.
Consumer products and licensing achieved revenues of $34.8 million, which is up from $30.8 million.
It was noted that the WWE merger litigation led to $2.4 million in legal costs for the quarter, while the ongoing UFC antitrust suits caused $32.4 million in legal expenses over the three months.
More on TKO’s third-quarter performance on Pollock & Thurston on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET
