UFC sold to investors for $4 billion

UFC President Dana White says the mixed martial arts company has been sold for approximately $US4 billion ($A5.28 billion) to a group of investors led by Hollywood talent agency WME-IMG.

White confirmed the sale in text messages to The Associated Press on Monday night.

White will stay on to run the UFC, which has grown from a money-losing promotional company in a minor sport into a global entertainment brand.

UFC owners Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta kept only a minority interest in the company.

The Fertitta brothers and White purchased the promotion for $US2 million ($A2.64 million) in 2000, and the brothers' casino fortune kept it afloat while MMA gained widespread acceptance and increasing popularity.

The New York Times first reported the completion of the long-rumoured deal.