The UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House on Sunday is a unique sporting event, so Dana White landed a notable country star to perform the national anthem. Zac Brown, lead singer of the Zac Brown Band, is set to perform “The Star-Spangled Banner” in Washington, D.C. ahead of the seven-fight card.
Brown is no stranger to lending assistance to big sporting events. The Zac Brown Band sings the opening song to NBC’s Sunday Night Baseball coverage every week, and he has sung the national anthem at a few sporting events in his life.
Brown’s decision to be a part of the proceedings was somewhat controversial, but the singer believes this represents a huge honor. Here’s why Brown will sing the national anthem tonight.
MORE: Live weather updates from the UFC White House event
Why is Zac Brown performing the national anthem at the UFC White House card?
Zac Brown accepted the invitation to sing the national anthem at the UFC White House card due to his appreciation for the military. Brown received some criticism for agreeing to join the event, but he maintained that he has too much respect for service members to turn it down.
“Man, I’m there for the troops, man. I’m there to honor America,” Brown said on The Pat McAfee Show. “This is patriotism, not politics for me. I mean, f— all the division. I don’t believe in that. I love this country. I love all the people that have sacrificed so that I can live my American dream and that everyone that lives here gets a chance to do that if they work hard and make the right decisions. So it doesn’t have a place in politics for me.”
Brown also mentioned that the UFC is his favorite sport, so he views singing the national anthem before the event as a unique opportunity.
“It’s history, man, getting to be part of American history, man,” Brown added. Having the first sporting event that’s on the lawn of the White House. I mean, it’s an honor.”
Brown’s performance will kick off a huge night that includes seven fights on the White House lawn, assuming the weather cooperates.
MORE: Predictions for the UFC White House event
When will Zac Brown sing the national anthem?
Brown will sing the national anthem before the UFC event at the White House, which is expected to begin at its production of the event at 8 p.m. ET. The fights will start at 9 p.m. ET, so Brown will sing the anthem at some point between.
The weather forecast for the night calls for severe thunderstorms, which could delay the fight if the clouds haven’t passed by then.
Per UFC: the production of UFC Freedom 250 will start at 8 p.m. now and fights begin at 9 p.m. ET.
— Greg Rosenstein (@grosenstein) June 14, 2026
Read the full article here
