TOKYO – Renowned fighting organization K-1 (presented by M-1 Sports Media K.K.: CEO Tomoha Oki) and the five-member team-grappling tournament QUINTET (presented by Rabarland, Inc.: CEO Kazushi Sakuraba) are pleased to announce that events hosted by both organizations will be live-streamed by the sports streaming provider, DAZN in over 200 countries and regions, including Japan.
M-1 Sports Media K.K. and Rabarland, Inc., the companies that respectively organize the striking martial arts event K-1 and the grappling tournament QUINTET, recently signed a capital and business alliance aimed at global expansion. As the first step in this ambitious initiative, the two companies have agreed to align with DAZN, the world’s largest sports streaming service. With the strong backing of DAZN as a media partner, they aim to showcase the unique aspects of both striking and grappling martial arts to a global audience.
The collaboration kicks off with live streaming of their inaugural joint event, “ReBOOT,” to be held at Yokohama Arena on September 10. What’s more, both organizations have scheduled both joint and individual events for live streaming in 2023 and 2024.
The event “ReBOOT” will feature two events at the same venue on the same day: “ReBOOT~K-1 ReBIRTH~” hosted by K-1, and “ReBOOT~QUINTET.4~” to be hosted by QUINTET. The K-1 event features the “K-1 30th anniversary openweight tournament,” which includes the participation of eight elite fighters, such as Mahmoud Sattari. Additionally, the K-1 super bantamweight championship match between current champion Akihiro Kaneko and Masashi Kumura will also be held, with a total of 15-16 matches planned for the event.
On the other hand, “ReBOOT~QUINTET.4~”, in which Japanese MMA legend Kazushi Sakuraba will also participate, will feature four, five-member teams competing in a one-day tournament for supremacy. Sakuraba’s eldest son, Taisei Sakuraba, will also make his professional debut at the event in a special singles match against former Olympic judo gold medalist Masato Uchishiba.
We hope you enjoy all the action on DAZN, as both of these organizations set their sights on the world stage!
■ DAZN Japan vice president, rights, Shimon Hoizumi:
“We are very excited to be able to deliver K-1, the best striking martial arts in Japan, and QUINTET, which was created by Japanese MMA legend Kazushi Sakuraba, to the world through DAZN. DAZN has been home to many world-class MMA and boxing matches. Adding K-1 and QUINTET to our
lineups will enable us to create opportunities for global sports fans to watch and become fans of
Japanese-born martial arts. We are thrilled to be a part of K-1 and QUINTET’s global growth.”
■
K-1 producer, Carlos Kikuta:
“I deeply appreciate DAZN for becoming our global media partner. As we announced our plans for
global expansion, K-1 is aiming to go global from Japan. I have no doubt being on DAZN platforms will push our initiatives forward very strongly. Not only events in Japan will be streamed to the world, but also Japanese fans can enjoy our events outside of Japan. Please stay tuned for our accelerated
expansion to the world”
About DAZN
DAZN is a leading sports streaming service in Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Japan, Taiwan, Canada, the U.S. and U.K. Its wide range of content includes top-flight football from the world’s most popular competitions – Bundesliga, English Premier League, J.League, LaLiga, Serie A, and the UEFA Champions League, in addition to the biggest sports from around the world – Formula 1, NFL, NBA, MotoGP and the UFC. DAZN is the only place for fans around the world to watch every NFL match outside North America.
DAZN is building the ultimate sports entertainment business where fans from across the globe can watch, read, bet, play, share, socialize, buy tickets and merchandise, all in one place, with one account, one wallet and on one app.
