UFC Faces Boycott Calls After Partnering With Bud Light

News that Bud Light was returning as the official beer of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ignited an immediate firestorm of criticism on social media, sparking renewed right-wing boycott calls.

On Tuesday, Bud Light's parent company Anheuser-Busch and UFC, an American mixed-martial arts (MMA) organization that holds more than 40 live events annually around the world, announced a new "multiyear marketing partnership," according to an online statement shared by the beer maker. Starting January 1, Anheuser-Busch will become the exclusive "Official Beer Partner of UFC," and as part of the sponsorship, Bud Light will become the official beer in the U.S., according to the statement.

While the terms were not disclosed publicly, ESPN reported that it was the biggest sponsorship deal in UFC history. Critics were especially enraged that the deal means the Bud Light brand, which will replace Modelo as the official beer of UFC, will have a heavy presence in all the MMA organization's content.

The news of the deal triggered quick backlash for UFC and reignited boycott calls for the brewer, which has been plagued by criticism for months after the beer brand partnered with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney for a promotion in April.

Several celebrities, including musician Kid Rock and country singers John Rich and Travis Tritt, joined the mounting right-wing boycott calls, which ultimately led to a drop in sales for Bud Light. It finally appeared as if the controversy was beginning to fade in recent weeks but social media users took aim at the beer brand once again on Monday, slamming Bud Light for co-sponsoring an LGBTQ+ Pride event in Arizona over the weekend.

Newsweek reached out via email on Tuesday to Anheuser-Busch and UFC representatives for comment.

The announcement of the Bud Light partnership a day later garnered blowback for UFC, with people posting on X, formerly Twitter, saying they're "done" watching the MMA fights.

X user TheRealMattDail took aim at UFC chief executive officer Dana White in a post on the social media platform and called for a boycott.

"@danawhite and @ufc, you have become the reason why your audience will begin to dwindle," TheRealMattDail posted. "Pandering to Bud Light is disgusting. Guess it's time to boycott UFC, America!"

In a statement announcing the deal with the beer maker, White said Anheuser-Busch and Bud Light were UFC's original beer sponsors more than 15 years ago.

"I'm proud to announce we are back in business together," White said. "There are many reasons why I chose to go with Anheuser-Busch and Bud Light, most importantly because I feel we are very aligned when it comes to our core values and what the UFC brand stands for. I'm looking forward to all of the incredible things we will do in the years ahead."

One X user, MuensterJohann, referred to White as "woke UFC globalist," in a post, lashing out at UFC over the deal.

"@ufc I am done watching UFC until they remove that woke Clydesdale p*** @budlight beer, another thing is Bill Gates bought a bunch of this p*** beer stock and as long as UFC is a sponsor of @budlight, I'm done," MuensterJohann posted. "Bill Gates and Bud Lite are the problem with this country-Dana stop being a woke UFC globalist!"

Clay Travis, founder of sports media website OutKick, blasted Bud Light, saying the "brand is dead" in a post on X.

"Bud Light just spent $100 million on a UFC sponsorship deal to try and cancel out the chicks with d**** ad. No one is drinking Bud Light at any tailgate I've been to this fall. Brand is dead."

One person, AntEvansMMA, posted on X that the deal between the beer maker and UFC was an "expensive lifeline" to save Bud Light.

"As soon as Bud Light destroyed their business with that ghastly stunt earlier this year, I had a feeling it would be a boon for UFC. The first time Bud partnered UFC, it was almost as if they were doing UFC a favor. This time it is UFC selling them a very expensive lifeline."