The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has confirmed it’ll be hitting the coasts of China later this year. Chinese casino business enclave Macau is the lucky part of the country that will host the Fight Night on November 10th 2012. As anticipated earlier it will take place at the Venetian Macau-Resort Hotel’s CotaiArena that has a capacity of 15,000. Commenting on the event, UFC chairman and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta, said: “Breaking into a market with a population of over 1.3 billion is both a testament to the growth of our sport and a long-term challenge we are excited to undertake. This is just the first of many world-class fights we plan to hold over the coming years in China, one of the birthplaces of martial arts. The world-class CotaiArena in Macau is an ideal place to start this journey.”
Meanwhile analysts are predicting that gaming industry revenue in the enclave will bounce back in July. Macau Business report that Citigroup forecasters think the market will grow by 7 percent to MOP26 billion. That’s also a month-on-month increase of 11 percent and would represent something of a recovery from June. Nomura, a Japanese brokerage firm, added that they expect the growth rate to remain at single figures for the next two months.
A survey has found that a third of locals in Macau enjoy a flutter in one of the enclave’s casinos. Macau Post Daily reports that a study carried out by the General Union of Neighbourhood Associations of Macau, or in Cantonese Kai Fong, found 32 percent of adults gamble. 40 percent do so inside a casino with approximately a quarter betting on sports. Of the 960 questioned, 70 percent said they wanted the government to push ahead with responsible gaming reform.
