How much did President Trump’s ties to the world of sports shape his return to the presidency? More than most could have ever predicted.

From his high-profile appearances at major sporting events to his stance on banning transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports, Trump expertly used sports as a platform to connect with like-minded voters.

His frequent rounds of golf at age 78 and public displays of physical activity reinforced an image of vitality and strength. All were gestures that resonated with an important portion of the electorate, who eventually supported him at the poles.

Think about it. Nearly, 30 years ago, a Republican Senator and former Presidential candidate, John McCain, called mixed martial arts “human-cockfighting” and tried to get it banned nationwide. When Trump became the President-elect this week. standing at his side was the president of the UFC, the world’s biggest mixed-martial arts company, Dana White.

“The funny thing is it was Republicans then and it’s Republicans now,” one of the original founders of the UFC, Campbell McLaren, told the Sun. “Sports is always about underdogs and heroes, and what Trump, did like him or don’t like him, is he brilliantly positioned himself as the underdog. They shot him. They tried to put him in jail. They tried to shut him out, and he overcame all that and now he fights for us. He positioned himself as an underdog and a hero and MMA is great at finding heroes.”

The support from the MMA community can’t be understated. Mr. White, a long-time friend, introduced Trump before his speech at the Republican National Convention. A UFC commentator and host of one to the top podcasts in the nation, the Joe Rogan Experience, Joe Rogan, endorsed Trump along with several UFC fighters. Throughout his legal battles and throughout his campaign, Trump made appearances at UFC events at Newark and Miami where he received thunderous ovations.

The chief executive of Combate Americas, a Miami-based MMA company focused on the Hispanic market, Mr. McLaren, said attending sporting events, and particularly MMA events put Trump “in front of a bunch of young men who really don’t typically vote and he got them to vote.”

His stance against transgender athletes also resonated with his MAGA movement. Trump campaigned on the promise that on “day one” he would ban transgender athletes from competing against women.

He made it a hot button issue that involves undoing a policy instituted by the Biden Administration that offered protections for transgender students under the Title IX federal civil rights law, including the use of bathrooms, locker rooms, and pronouns that align with their gender identities.

During a campaign rally in North Carolina, Trump told supporters, “I will keep men out of women’s sports. Who would even think that you can allow this? Who would say that this is okay?  These people are sick.”

Transgender athletes have been on Trump’s radar since 2022 when University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas became the first transgender individual to win an NCAA Division 1 championship by capturing the women’s 500-yard freestyle after previously swimming on the men’s team at Penn.

“Young girls and women are incensed that they are now being forced to compete against those who are biological males,” Trump said. “It’s not good for women. It’s not good for women’s sports, which worked for so long and so hard to get to where they are.”

His love for golf didn’t hurt. In addition to releasing video of himself playing golf at a time when President Biden’s health was being questioned, Trump appeared on the popular YouTube channel of the U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau.

In addition, on the eve of the election, Trump appeared on the Let’s Go podcast as a guest of New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick and sportscaster Jimy Gray where he discussed WNBA player salaries, the proposed LIV Golf and PGA merger, and the rising cost of tickets to attend sporting events.

“Your middle class, which is the biggest sports fans, are being priced out. It’s not fair,” Trump told the hosts. He later added, “The leagues are not taking care of their fans. They really aren’t. They’re making it impossible.”

Mr. McLaren, who is an admitted “lefty,” recalled reaching out to the Democratic National Committee with an offer to align their campaign with his company which specializes in reaching the Hispanic market and broadcasts its matches on Univision.

“I saw this coming a year ago when I would talk to Hispanic people and they were telling me they were going to vote for Trump,” he said. “Immigration was a real problem for them and these people were from Texas, Arizona and California. But when I contacted the DNC their response to me was, ‘we like your audience, but we don’t like the fighting.’ C’mon, that’s backward.”

Meanwhile, Trump capitalized on his ties to MMA, golf, and football to go to President from underdog again.