UFC’s Dana White joins Meta’s board weeks before Trump takes office
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UFC boss Dana White, who was filmed slapping his wife twice during an altercation, has been appointed to the board of Meta. The decision by the company's boss, Mark Zuckerberg, has been met with fury while seen by many as a further example of the billionaire moving to appease Donald Trump. White, the president and CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship, is a key figure in the incoming president's orbit.
The social media giant, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, is also adding auto tycoon John Elkann and tech investor Charlie Songhurst, Zuckerberg said in a Facebook post. White's ties with Trump date back to 2001, when he hosted a UFC at the Republican's former casino hotel, the Trump Taj Mahal, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
The president-elect has also appeared with White at UFC matches over the years, especially in his 2024 campaign, as part of efforts to appeal to younger male voters. White, in turn, has had speaking roles at the 2016, 2020 and 2024 Republican conventions and appeared on stage at Trump's election victory party in November, even speaking briefly to the crowd.
Zuckerberg said he has built UFC "into one of the most valuable, fastest growing, and most popular sports enterprises in the world. "I've admired him as an entrepreneur and his ability to build such a beloved brand." However, on New Year's Eve 2023, White was caught on film slapping his wife, Anne, while in a nightclub in Mexico.
A video shows the couple getting into a row on New Year's Eve, prompting others to intervene. Anne is seen striking her husband before he slaps her back. "You've heard me say for years there is never, ever an excuse for a man to put his hands on a woman, and now here I am talking about it," White later said. "My wife and I have been married for almost 30 years. We've known each other since we were 12 years old.
