MVP MMA: communications strategy
Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) and the Professional Fighters League (PFL) merged on July 30, 2026. On Jan. 1, 2027, PFL becomes MVP MMA, and more than 300 fighters and PFL's fan base have to make the move.
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problem
Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) and the Professional Fighters League (PFL) merged on July 30, 2026. On Jan. 1, 2027, PFL becomes MVP MMA, and more than 300 fighters and PFL's fan base have to make the move. Eight weeks in, the CEO had resigned with no named successor, no U.S. TV partner was in place, the company's "fighter first" promise had no published proof, and UFC CEO Dana White was dismissing the merger on the record.
solution
The assignment: As outside counsel, plan how MVP moves PFL's fighters and fans into MVP MMA, and tell the chief executive what to decide first.
Role: Solo strategist, researcher and writer; Town Squared Strategies.
Independent case study built from public information. Not affiliated with MVP or the PFL.
What I did
Verified 33 sources, with primary sources governing any conflict.
Captured and hand-coded audience data: page one of Google for 15 queries (113 results) and 150 comments across three r/MMA threads.
Rated four communication risks, then tested the ratings against the data.
Built the response: an executive briefing, communications plan, messaging architecture, four ready-to-use drafts and a monitoring plan.
What I found
Leadership comes first. Until a CEO is named, no other message has a speaker. Search results still listed the former CEO, and fans were inventing reasons for his exit.
The fighter promise is unknown, not disbelieved. The company owned none of the eight page-one results for "PFL fighter pay," and "fighter first" appeared in none of 150 fan comments.
Fans are already winning the UFC argument. Most comments mocked White's dismissal, not MVP.
The brand name collides in search. Fighter Michael "Venom" Page, nicknamed MVP, took four of nine page-one results for "MVP MMA."
What I recommended
Name a chief executive before the next PFL event on Oct. 16.
Back "fighter first" with published terms for every fighter: a $40,000 minimum purse and the right to keep personal sponsors.
Hold one line on distribution: "U.S. partner to be announced."
Split spokesperson roles. The CEO owns leadership and fighter terms; Jake Paul owns fan reach.
year
2026
timeframe
7 days
tools
NLP, Python, Vercel
category
Comm Analytics
