In a recent episode of the Flograppling Show, newly appointed general manager Ben Kovacs made his first public appearance since taking the helm of the popular jiu-jitsu streaming platform. During the interview, Kovacs addressed the ongoing criticisms of Flograppling’s subscription pricing model and outlined his vision for the company’s future.
Kovacs, who joined the company just 60 days ago, brings a unique blend of business acumen and jiu-jitsu experience to his role. A 19-year practitioner who started at Yamasaki Academy, Kovacs previously worked at Twitter and served as chief revenue officer for a cannabis company in California. However, his most notable achievement in the jiu-jitsu community is founding Guardian, a nonprofit organization that provides free jiu-jitsu training to underprivileged children.
“Guardian has 27 academies around the world with over 500 kids training jiu-jitsu every day for free,” Kovacs explained, describing what he calls his “life’s work” before joining Flow.
When addressing Flograppling’s subscription model, which has long been a point of contention in the community, Kovacs made a statement that immediately raised eyebrows and became the focal point of heated discussion.
“An average grappler might spend $300 a month to train at a gym, $250 a month and then they travel to their favorite tournaments, they pay tournament entry fees, they have a seminar… And then when you annualize a yearly Flograppling subscription at about $12.50, people go ‘oh my god, that’s so expensive,'” Kovacs said.
The $12.50 per month figure—representing the annualized cost of a yearly subscription—quickly drew criticism from many fans who pointed out that this characterization minimizes the actual cost concerns many have with the service.
Kovacs framed the issue as merely “a messaging problem,” suggesting that subscribers should view their payment as “an investment in the sport” rather than an expense. He highlighted that Flow has been investing “tens and tens of millions of dollars” in jiu-jitsu over the past 12 years.
“I don’t think I understood the investment that Flograppling was making in the grappling community and for how long,” Kovacs admitted, referencing how he viewed the company before joining. “This year because you see the UFC investing 10 to 12 million dollars in this press release in jiu-jitsu, and then I start running the numbers and looking around here and looking at historicals, and I’m like wait a second, we’ve been doing this for like 12 years.”
Social media reaction to Kovacs’ interview has been decidedly mixed. Many appreciate his jiu-jitsu background and nonprofit work while strongly questioning his characterization of the subscription price concerns.
One user commented: “Calling $150 a year ‘just $12.50 a month’ when you can only pay annually at that rate is exactly the kind of corporate messaging problem he claims to be addressing.”
Another Twitter user wrote: “Glad Flo is going to cover all events now, but claiming people are upset about ‘$12.50’ when most are paying $30 monthly because they only want to watch specific events is tone-deaf.”
A particularly pointed comment summarized the frustration many feel: “Your messaging problem is loud and clear because you’re not just $12.50 a month. When ADCC or any major event rolls around, you try to ‘shake down’ fans who just want to watch. That’s when your true colors show. Any ‘investment’ you’re making in jiu-jitsu looks more like a cash grab exploiting surge moments rather than supporting the sport. You’re the Uber of BJJ streaming… and not in a good way.”
The new GM also addressed another sore point for many fans: Flograppling ‘s previous reluctance to cover events they don’t have streaming rights for, particularly Craig Jones’ Jiu-Jitsu Invitational (CJI). Kovacs, who has close personal ties to Craig Jones through their charitable work, assured viewers this policy has changed.
“That is something that is certainly now changed and there we will cover everything whether we have the rights to it or not,” Kovacs stated. “Because if it’s grappling and it’s interesting and our fans and consumers want to see it, then they should be able to see it and hear it and hear your opinion on it.”
This policy shift comes at a time when FloSports, Flograppling’s parent company, is dealing with the aftermath of a $1.55 million settlement for a class action lawsuit regarding automatic renewal practices. The lawsuit, which was settled in February 2024, alleged that the company violated federal and state laws by automatically renewing subscriptions without proper authorization from customers and misleading consumers into thinking they were signing up for monthly services while charging them annual fees.
Adding to the company’s troubles, many settlement checks were reportedly returned due to “insufficient funds,” though the settlement administrator has claimed this was due to a technical error with their bank and not FloSports’ fault.
