The Ministry of Sports on Monday launched the first step towards the legalization of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) in France with a call for applications from the federations to take charge of this extreme combat sport.
With the launch of a call for expressions of interest (AMI), interested federations will be able to submit their dossiers by 27 September. These will be studied by a jury of qualified and independent personalities to give an opinion to the Minister of Sports Roxana Maracineanu.
"An important moment for MMA actors in France"
Between December 2 and 6, the French National Olympic and Sports Committee (CNOSF) will also announce its position before a final decision scheduled for December 31. The chosen federation will obtain from January 1st, 2020 a full and complete delegation for two years on the amateur and professional aspects of this sport which associates several disciplines and allows kicks, fists, knees and elbows, as well as shots on the ground, chokes and keys.
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"This is an important moment for MMA actors in France and French sport," said Sports Minister Roxana Maracineanu during a press conference organized on the occasion of the launch of the MAI. "France has been an exception for many years, and we had to take this reality into account in order to better frame and apprehend it."
40,000 practitioners in France
Despite a number of practitioners estimated at 40,000 in hundreds of clubs, France was until now the last great country to ban MMA on its soil while the sport has taken a global dimension under the impetus of the powerful American professional league , the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), bought in 2016 for nearly $ 4 billion.
The former Secretary of State for Sports, Thierry Braillard, had thus taken in October 2016 a decree clearly prohibiting any competition, despite a parliamentary report advocating progressive legalization. But after the election of Emmanuel Macron, the former Minister of Sports Laura Flessel had begun the turning point, which includes Roxana Maracineanu, the current Minister.