Assessing the role of stakeholder relationships in the promotion of a major event on social media

In 2016, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) hosted an event for the first time at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The McGregor-Alveraz fight card held three championship fights which was another first in the UFC. During the weeks before the fight, the UFC relied heavily on league and fighters to engage with fans through social media to promote the event. Therefore, this study employed a relationship marketing framework to examine consumer engagement on social media. The research focused on UFC 205, one of the most high-profile Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) events in history. After examining the Twitter activity surrounding UFC 205, it was found that both groups focus primarily on disseminating content that highlights group experience and information sharing. However, promotional content was retweeted most frequently by followers. The UFC is considered a leader in social media marketing among professional sport leagues, so the study holds important implications for sport marketers across numerous industry sectors Keywords: Social Media, Brand Ambassadors, Marketing, Event Promotion, eWOM DOI: 10.7176/JMCR/92-06 Publication date: February 28 th 2024