Mixed Martial Arts, Organised Crime and The Night-Time Economy: MMA Fighters Who Work as Bouncers and Become Drug Traffickers
Authors: Berry, M.
Publication Date: 01/01/2026
Pages: 123-137
DOI: 10.4324/9781003569466-11
Abstract:MMA has emerged as a popular combat sport, which is known for its brutal physicality and high-stakes competition. For many male athletes, it has become a powerful symbol of masculine identity expressed through the physical capital of the body. Some MMA fighters have also leveraged their combat skills by finding employment in the night-time economy as Door Supervisors (bouncers). The role of the bouncer can also lead actors towards combat sports as a means to become more proficient on the job. However, their embeddedness in the criminal settings of the night-time economy can also lead to illicit pathways, whereby they can exploit their dispositional skillset and criminal connections to engage in criminal enterprise. Others may be sought out by criminal actors as potential partners, as they are seen as physically capable and therefore trustworthy. Nonetheless, the intersection of professional fighters, nightclub security work and organised crime is an area that is rarely the subject of academic attention. This chapter seeks to examine this complex relationship, drawing upon data from an ethnographic study of the illicit drug trade in a city in England.
Source: Scopus