AresMMA completes successful strategic capital raise as Amaury Group joins SLAM and Ciryl Gane
Paris, France — September 9, 2026 — AresMMA, the leading fully integrated Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) organization in Europe, today announced the completion of a strategic capital raise, with Amaury Group, an independent family-owned media and sports group, joining its capital. The transaction was completed alongside TRAIL, reinvesting through its SLAM fund as majority shareholder, and Ciryl Gane, athlete and current UFC heavyweight interim Champion, AresMMA co-founder, reinvesting through his family office LORI6 Ventures to renew his commitment.
AresMMA is a pan-European, vertically integrated sports platform uniting professional MMA leagues and operations, athlete management and training, and content production within a single ecosystem. Following its acquisition by SLAM and Ciryl Gane in May 2024, and the July 2024 entry of sports and entertainment figures Rudy Gobert, Pierre Gasly, Randal Kolo Muani, William Saliba and Yvick Letexier, the group entered a new phase of growth in 2026 with the acquisition of Hexagone MMA in April and, now, the investment of Amaury Group.
The capital raise will enable AresMMA to accelerate its expansion across Europe, strengthen media coverage, further scale content production around the events and the fighters of its roster, and finally continue building the leading pan-European MMA organization.
Amaury Group is a leading media and sports company, combining premium sports journalism with the creation and organization of world-class sporting events. Its portfolio includes L’Équipe—France’s leading sports media across print, digital, and television—which reaches more than 38 million people every month. The Group also publishes France Football and Vélo Magazine, and presents the Ballon d’Or, football’s most prestigious individual accolade. Through Amaury Sport Organisation (A.S.O.), Amaury Group designs, promotes, and delivers globally recognized sporting events, including the Tour de France and the Dakar Rally, attracting millions of spectators and participants worldwide. For AresMMA, Amaury Group’s arrival brings to the project unique expertise in media, audiovisual production, brand building and large-scale event organization, decisive levers to raise European MMA to the highest international standards.
“Amaury Group joining AresMMA marks a new milestone for the group. Bringing together, as equity investors, a world-class athlete, a long-term investor and a leading media and sports-event company gives us the means to build the European leader in MMA. With Ciryl Gane and Amaury Group, we approach this new growth phase with an undiminished ambition: to make AresMMA the reference for combat sports in Europe,” said Xavier Marin, President of TRAIL.
“We believe in the potential of MMA in Europe and in the vision carried by AresMMA, TRAIL and Ciryl Gane. This sport unites a young, passionate and fast-growing community. Amaury Group intends to put its media, brand and event-organization expertise to work for an ambitious project, at a time when the discipline is establishing itself durably in the French and European sporting landscape,” said Jean-Étienne Amaury, CEO of Amaury Group.
“From day one, my goal has been to give European fighters a stage worthy of their talent. Amaury Group’s arrival will allow us to go even further, offering our athletes, our fans, and a larger audience, an experience and exposure of an unprecedented level. I am proud to continue this journey as an investor and to reaffirm my commitment alongside TRAIL and Amaury Group,” said Ciryl Gane, co-founder of AresMMA.
With this renewed backing, AresMMA plans to step up its event programming in France and across Europe, expand its broadcast formats and the promotion of its fighters, and accelerate its growth across European, Middle Eastern and African markets. The group remains firmly committed to its ambition of becoming the reference MMA organization in Europe.
About AresMMA
Established in 2020 following the legalization of MMA in France, and controlled by SLAM since 2024, AresMMA is the first fully integrated MMA player in Europe across the entire fighter lifecycle: (i) professional MMA league hosting regular fight nights in major urban arenas across Europe (Ares Fighting Championship and Hexagone MMA), (ii) athlete management and representation in contract negotiation, personal branding / storytelling, media presence and career development (Management Factory, BTT), (iii) talent identification and training through dedicated academies (MMA Factory, MMA Performance Center) and (iv) co-production & licensing of premium content with leading media partners.
About SLAM
SLAM is the first investment fund managed by TRAIL dedicated to the sport, luxury, arts and music industries. SLAM identifies and supports the best companies in these sectors to turn them into global champions. SLAM fosters cross-pollination between these growth industries, which combine resilience, innovation and French excellence, in service of its investors’ performance.
To learn more, visit our website or connect with us on LinkedIn.
About Amaury Group
Amaury Group is a privately owned leading media and sports company, combining premium sports journalism with the creation and organization of world-class sporting events. Its portfolio includes L’Équipe—France’s leading sports media across print, digital, and television—which reaches more than 38 million people every month. The Group also publishes France Football and Vélo Magazine, and presents the Ballon d’Or, football’s most prestigious individual accolade. Through Amaury Sport Organisation (A.S.O.), Amaury Group designs, promotes, and delivers globally recognized sporting events, including the Tour de France and the Dakar Rally, attracting millions of spectators and participants worldwide.
To learn more, visit our website or connect with us on LinkedIn.
About LORI6 Ventures and Ciryl Gane
LORI6 Ventures is the family office of the current UFC heavyweight interim Champion of the world, Ciryl Gane, home to investments in Sport and Entertainment startups, Ciryl Gane’s personal brands and other venture deals.
To learn more, visit our website or connect with us on LinkedIn.
Media Contact
TRAIL
Olivier Chartier
ochartier@trailcapital.eu
