President Donald Trump wants to celebrate his 80th birthday and the country's 250th anniversary with a UFC fight night on the White House South Lawn. But a new federal lawsuit says that's not going to happen without a fight.

The Public Integrity Project, representing two Virginia residents, filed the lawsuit on Saturday, alleging that the Trump administration's approval of the June 14 event violates National Park Service regulations that prohibit sporting events on federal parklands, according to POLITICO. The plaintiffs also claim that Congress never authorized the towering arch being built for the event, and that the project skipped an environmental review.

“This is fundamentally a private, commercial, corrupt use of our most sacred national monuments for private gain,” said Brendan Ballou, the plaintiffs' lawyer.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The event, dubbed the Freedom 250, is expected to cost UFC owner TKO Group Holdings (TKO) $30 million. While that might seem like a lot for a birthday party, Wall Street analysts see it as a savvy marketing move. Bernstein analyst Ian Moore told MarketDash that the high-profile event aligns with TKO's long-term growth plans, arguing that the company's strong monetization capabilities allow it to absorb the cost in exchange for greater mainstream exposure. Moore maintains an “Outperform” rating on the stock and a $240 price target.

The UFC fight is expected to draw huge TV audiences, but it faces competition from a rival promotion. Most Valuable Promotions, co-founded by Jake Paul, recently set an MMA viewership record with an average of 12.4 million viewers on Netflix Inc. (NFLX), including 9.3 million in the U.S. — just a month before Trump's birthday event.

Trump, meanwhile, has suggested that the UFC arena on the South Lawn could become a permanent fixture, comparing it to Paris' Eiffel Tower. He noted that the Eiffel Tower was initially a temporary structure for the 1889 World's Fair but was preserved after becoming a popular attraction.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by MarketDash editors.