“I’ve had a lot of great partners over the years that have helped us grow this sport, but Mark and his team at Meta are going to do things that will blow UFC fans away,” quipped Dana White as he announced a groundbreaking collaboration between the UFC and Meta. Since the ongoing controversy surrounding the UFC’s ranking system, White has been vocal about his intent to find a solution—and now, it seems that moment has arrived. With Meta stepping in, the UFC looks poised to level up its digital presence. But can Meta’s Threads – their counter for X – really help them and improve the fan experience? Well, White believes this, but the fans say otherwise.
Mark Zuckerberg has been an ardent follower of the sport. It doesn’t matter if he is watching from the ringside, from his home, or training for MMA; the tech mogul is a big fanboy of the promotion, and for him to partner up with Dana White to provide a more fabulous fan experience to the community is a big deal, at least for him. As the UFC CEO announced that groundbreaking deal, Zuckerberg released a statement where he stated, “I love this sport, and I’m looking forward to working with the UFC to let fans experience it in new ways.”
So, now you might be confused. How will Meta increase the fan experience? Well, as per the official information, the Mark Zuckerberg-led entity will be the “official fan technology partner” of UFC, which means that Threads will become the “official social media partner” of the UFC. Interestingly, the UFC has launched an exclusive campaign for this, where Bruce Buffer will read the thread posts of the fans provided that they exclusively tag the UFC while doing their thread post.
UFC programming will now feature full integration with Meta’s entire product ecosystem — spanning social media and messaging platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook, as well as cutting-edge innovations, including Meta Glasses, Meta Quest, and Meta AI.
Exciting? Well, many within the community might be thinking otherwise. The MMA fans expected that UFC might be partnering with Instagram exclusively and that they would witness new features, but Threads came out of the question. Amidst the chaos, let’s have a look at what the fans are saying.
Dana White gets called out by UFC fans for picking Threads for fan experience
When Threads hit the market back in July 2023, it was a war between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg due to the competition. Threads added 2 million signups in 2 hours since its launch, and within five days, it amassed a whopping 100 million sign-ups. However, the emerging social media app declined due to its relevance. Looking at this, a fan wrote, “bruh who even used threads.” So, is Threads dead? We beg to differ. As of 2025, the Mark Zuckerberg app has 320 million monthly active users and 100 million daily active users, making it one of the biggest social media apps in the entire world.
Another fan emphasized, “No one on threads d—.” This statement might be a bit too far-fetched as Threads has millions of users, and according to Business of Apps,’ the app is expected to generate an additional $11 billion in revenue for Meta.
Yet another user concurred, “Still not using Threads. Tried it a for a while and it’s garbage. No very many people are on it compared to X. Also I like Bruce but it’s cringy when he uses his in ring stuff for advertisement.” Talk about killing two birds with one stone… poor Bruce, catching strays from Threads.
Moving on, a fan added, “Remember when MMA was cool?” The early days of the UFC, when the organization was still growing, were golden. From innovative TV ads featuring fighters like Georges St. Pierre and Jon Jones to adopting boxing-style fight promotions, the UFC did it all. But as times changed, so did the UFC’s tactics; nostalgia is all that’s left of the good old days now.
But with all the changes, what has been the biggest problem in the UFC these days? It’s the judging and the fouls. From the Cyril Gane vs. Alexander Volkov fight to the Leon Edwards vs. Sean Brady dilemma, judging has been the weak point of the promotion, and according to a fan, “Doing everything except fixing judging and fouls.”
Last but not the least, a social media user emphasized, “Threads is such a terrible place with the absolute worst people saying some of the d—— s— you ever heard of”. Regardless, Mark Zuckerberg is making his way to becoming an integral part of the UFC, having played his cards well—but will this move prove beneficial for both the UFC and Meta in the long run? That remains the question.
The post “Terrible Place With the Absolute Worst People”- Fans’ Pressure Mounts on Dana White’s Meta Partnership With Mark Zuckerberg appeared first on EssentiallySports.