FX TO BROADCAST EFC AFRICA
Aug 29, 2011 Comments
(PRESS RELEASE) -- Today, Africa’s premier mixed martial arts
organisation, Extreme Fighting Championship Africa (EFC AFRICA) has
joined forces with Fox International Channels, the world's edgiest
pay television network, to bring world class MMA action to homes
across the continent. FX, the international home of award winning,
original television has reached a multi-national agreement with EFC
AFRICA.
The milestone agreement is a huge step forward for the world's fastest growing sport, making EFC AFRICA the first African MMA promotion to sign a continent-wide broadcast deal. The agreement will see EFC AFRICA dominating what FX calls Friday Fight Nights.
Two hour-long episodes of EFC AFRICA will air back-to-back each
Friday night, exposing the continent's best MMA athletes to fans
across Africa. Each episode is packed wall-to-wall with bouts from
all of EFC AFRICA’s monumental events. EFC AFRICA will replace
Strikeforce as FX’s MMA mainstay, giving an African audience the
opportunity to watch local warriors as they fight for glory in the
EFC AFRICA hexagon.
“FX is a network that understands the power of MMA and recognises EFC AFRICA's potential, and we are proud to partner with them on the most exciting sporting property in Africa” says Cairo Howarth, EFC AFRICA President. “The Fox Group is home to the UFC and Strikeforce, and we are excited to join this powerful stable. A broadcast opportunity such as this has been our goal since EFC AFRICA’s inception and we are looking forward to expanding with FX as we both gain ground across the continent.”
"We are committed to bringing top quality local content to the FX AFRICA channel, and EFC AFRICA fits this mould perfectly. The rise of mixed martial arts is a global phenomenon and FX is positioned as the home of MMA internationally and now here in Africa," says Thandi Davids, FX AFRICA Director. "You can see from EFC AFRICA's rapid rise that they are Africa's MMA driving force and pioneers in sports entertainment on the continent."
With its inaugural fight night in late 2009, EFC AFRICA swiftly dominated South Africa's mixed martial arts scene to become the largest, most prestigious MMA promotion in Africa. EFC AFRICA currently has a stable of over 70 of the continent’s top MMA athletes, all training to showcase their skills in bouts that test courage, strength fitness and human spirit until one hand is raised in victory.
Every 8 weeks EFC AFRICA hosts sold-out events with 7000+ fans at world-renowned venues complete with unparalleled sound, lighting and atmosphere, and regularly fills cinema houses across South Africa. EFC AFRICA has grown into a household name, complete with a full range of DVDs, branded apparel and technical equipment.
The EFC AFRICA athletes, corporate sponsors and ultimately the throngs of fans across Africa will soon have every Friday Night to look forward to.
The first EFC AFRICA broadcast is scheduled for Friday 23 September. The full broadcast schedule will be available shortly at www.fxafrica.tv and www.efcafrica.com
EFC AFRICA premiers on FX channel 110 on TopTV on Friday 23 September at 20:30 CAT.
About FOX International Channels
FOX International Channels (FIC) is News Corporation’s (NYSE: NWS, NWS.A) international multi-media business. We develop, produce and distribute over 200 entertainment, factual, sports and lifestyle channels across Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa, in 35 languages. These networks and their related mobile, non-linear and high-definition extensions, reach over 370 million subscribing households (1 billion cumulative) worldwide. We also operate a global online advertising unit, .FOX (pronounced “dot-fox”) which specializes in online video and display, and four TV production houses. In operation since: August 14, 1993.
The milestone agreement is a huge step forward for the world's fastest growing sport, making EFC AFRICA the first African MMA promotion to sign a continent-wide broadcast deal. The agreement will see EFC AFRICA dominating what FX calls Friday Fight Nights.
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“FX is a network that understands the power of MMA and recognises EFC AFRICA's potential, and we are proud to partner with them on the most exciting sporting property in Africa” says Cairo Howarth, EFC AFRICA President. “The Fox Group is home to the UFC and Strikeforce, and we are excited to join this powerful stable. A broadcast opportunity such as this has been our goal since EFC AFRICA’s inception and we are looking forward to expanding with FX as we both gain ground across the continent.”
With over 1 billion people on the continent, FX is already
available in many African countries, including South Africa via
TopTV (channel 110), and is aggressively increasing its reach into
East and West Africa.
"We are committed to bringing top quality local content to the FX AFRICA channel, and EFC AFRICA fits this mould perfectly. The rise of mixed martial arts is a global phenomenon and FX is positioned as the home of MMA internationally and now here in Africa," says Thandi Davids, FX AFRICA Director. "You can see from EFC AFRICA's rapid rise that they are Africa's MMA driving force and pioneers in sports entertainment on the continent."
With its inaugural fight night in late 2009, EFC AFRICA swiftly dominated South Africa's mixed martial arts scene to become the largest, most prestigious MMA promotion in Africa. EFC AFRICA currently has a stable of over 70 of the continent’s top MMA athletes, all training to showcase their skills in bouts that test courage, strength fitness and human spirit until one hand is raised in victory.
Every 8 weeks EFC AFRICA hosts sold-out events with 7000+ fans at world-renowned venues complete with unparalleled sound, lighting and atmosphere, and regularly fills cinema houses across South Africa. EFC AFRICA has grown into a household name, complete with a full range of DVDs, branded apparel and technical equipment.
The EFC AFRICA athletes, corporate sponsors and ultimately the throngs of fans across Africa will soon have every Friday Night to look forward to.
The first EFC AFRICA broadcast is scheduled for Friday 23 September. The full broadcast schedule will be available shortly at www.fxafrica.tv and www.efcafrica.com
EFC AFRICA premiers on FX channel 110 on TopTV on Friday 23 September at 20:30 CAT.
About FOX International Channels
FOX International Channels (FIC) is News Corporation’s (NYSE: NWS, NWS.A) international multi-media business. We develop, produce and distribute over 200 entertainment, factual, sports and lifestyle channels across Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa, in 35 languages. These networks and their related mobile, non-linear and high-definition extensions, reach over 370 million subscribing households (1 billion cumulative) worldwide. We also operate a global online advertising unit, .FOX (pronounced “dot-fox”) which specializes in online video and display, and four TV production houses. In operation since: August 14, 1993.
