Latest news with #BOXXER
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UK promoter BOXXER announce new TV deal
UK promoter BOXXER announce new TV deal originally appeared on The Sporting News BBC Sport and UK promoter BOXXER today announced a new broadcast deal that will see live, world-class professional boxing return to Saturday night primetime television and BBC iPlayer on a free-to-air basis. Selected undercard fights, features and behind-the-scenes content will also be available across BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and app, BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport social channels. The new deal opens boxing up to all audiences, making the sport more accessible than ever. Full details of the first fight, undercard and BBC Sport presenting team will be announced in the coming weeks. Alex Kay-Jelski, Director of BBC Sport, said: 'Bringing professional boxing back to primetime BBC television, free-to-air, and to our extensive digital platforms is an exciting moment for us and for boxing fans. Boxing is a sport that we know deeply resonates with younger audiences and this deal with BOXXER enables us to showcase the next generation of British fighters - delivering top-tier national boxing moments to all audiences, wherever and however they want it.' Ben Shalom, Founder and CEO of BOXXER, said: 'Partnering with the BBC to deliver big-time British boxing on Saturday night TV is a historic moment. We're proud to bring the most entertaining British fighters to the biggest possible audience. This huge platform will give our fights the exposure they deserve and helps us take the sport to huge new audiences.' BOXXER had previously enjoyed a four-year deal with Sky Sports, but that ended at the end of June 2025. According to the Daily Mail, it was Sky Sports that decided not to renew the partnership. Currently, Sky Sports do not have any news on their boxing programme going forward, leading many to believe that they will opt to pick up individual rights for boxing events from a range of promoters instead of an exclusive rights deal.
BBC News
5 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
BBC Sport brings live boxing back to primetime television and BBC iPlayer in broadcast deal with BOXXER
BBC Sport and BOXXER have announced a new broadcast deal that will see live, world-class professional boxing return to Saturday night primetime television and BBC iPlayer on a free-to-air basis. Selected undercard fights, features and behind-the-scenes content will also be available across BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and app, BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport social channels. The new deal opens boxing up to all audiences, making the sport more accessible than ever. Full details of the first fight, undercard and BBC Sport presenting team will be announced in the coming weeks. Alex Kay-Jelski, Director of BBC Sport, says: 'Bringing professional boxing back to primetime BBC television, free-to-air, and to our extensive digital platforms is an exciting moment for us and for boxing fans. Boxing is a sport that we know deeply resonates with younger audiences and this deal with BOXXER enables us to showcase the next generation of British fighters - delivering top-tier national boxing moments to all audiences, wherever and however they want it'. Ben Shalom, Founder and CEO of BOXXER, says: 'Partnering with the BBC to deliver big-time British boxing on Saturday night TV is a historic moment. We're proud to bring the most entertaining British fighters to the biggest possible audience. This huge platform will gives our fights the exposure they deserve and helps us take the sport to huge new audiences.' CF Follow for more
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
BOXXER set to announce new broadcast deal following split with Sky Sports
Ben Shalom's BOXXER will announce its next broadcast deal this week. The British boxing promotion recently split with television giant Sky Sports after Sky opted not to renew its exclusive four-year contract worth £36 million. BOXXER has now teamed up with the BBC to be its next TV partner, sources close to the situation told Uncrowned. BBC iPlayer and a BBC linear network will be involved in showing BOXXER boxing events. The BBC has not been a regular player in the British boxing scene since the mid-'90s, following the end of their "Sportsnight" midweek program. For much of the 20th century, the BBC was the prominent network in the sport, but its boxing output reduced in the '90s after ITV and Sky became more active players in the market. BOXXER's two primary rivals, Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing and Frank Warren's Queensberry, have existing agreements with sports streaming service DAZN. The deal with the BBC keeps boxing on linear television in the UK at a time when it is struggling to garner the interest of networks on both sides of the pond. Although prime-time slots on BBC linear television and iPlayer will likely command a significant audience, the financial elements of the deal are expected to be dwarfed by the agreements Matchroom and Queensberry have with DAZN, making it difficult for BOXXER to compete. Uncrowned understands that multiple key-name fighters have held conversations with other promoters in recent weeks. Two BOXXER representatives denied knowledge of the announcement Wednesday morning, which is contrary to what multiple sources have told Uncrowned.
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Top light heavyweight Joshua Buatsi closing in on promotional deal with Frank Warren's Queensberry
Light heavyweight contender Joshua Buatsi is Queensberry bound. Buatsi is expected to depart from Ben Shalom's BOXXER and finalize a promotional deal with Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions this week, sources close to the situation told Uncrowned. The London-based former WBO interim champion previously left Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing to sign with BOXXER in 2023. The move was the subject of a £7.7 million ($9.5 million) high court battle after Matchroom alleged that BOXXER and Sky Sports had persuaded Buatsi to unlawfully abandon his exclusive promotional contract with them. The lawsuit resulted in the respective parties reaching a settlement earlier this year. Per court documents obtained by Uncrowned, Buatsi was offered an 18-month agreement with BOXXER for a minimum of four bouts with a minimum total aggregate purse between £3.25 million ($4.05 million) and £3.75 million ($4.68 million). Buatsi had his fourth contest with BOXXER when he dropped his WBO interim title to Callum Smith this past February on the Dmitry Bivol vs. Artur Beterbiev 2 undercard in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Buatsi's departure from BOXXER is expected to be the first of many fighters exiting the promotional stable after Sky Sports chose not to renew its four-year, £36 million ($45.5 million) agreement with the British promoter. Uncrowned understands that talks have taken place between BOXXER and the BBC to broadcast shows on iPlayer, although if a deal were to be reached, it would be significantly smaller than the one BOXXER had with Sky. BOXXER's primary rivals, Matchroom and Queensberry, have existing output agreements with streaming service DAZN. Queensberry also promotes Anthony Yarde, who challenges David Benavidez for the WBC light heavyweight title in November. A Buatsi vs. Yarde fight has been desired by British fans for the better part of the last decade, though an agreement for the matchup has yet to materialize.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Sky Sports staying in the fight gives British boxing a chance to keep swinging
Sky Sports' decision not to renew its exclusive deal with BOXXER marks the end of a four-year chapter that promised so much but delivered very little. Yet, British boxing fans should breathe a sigh of relief — not because BOXXER is gone, but because Sky isn't. At a time when boxing is struggling to entice mainstream networks to broadcast the sport, Sky's presence becomes even more vital to the survival of boxing across the pond. Advertisement In the U.S., HBO, FOX, Showtime, and now ESPN have all decided to bow out of the boxing business in recent years, leaving the sport without the consistent backing of a mainstream television outlet. While Amazon Prime Video has an existing deal with Premier Boxing Champions, the events have been infrequent and mostly behind an additional paywall. Boxing has faced a steady decline in mainstream visibility in the U.S. and has thus struggled to stay in the public eye, losing casual fans and slipping from the broader sports conversation. A sport that was once among the biggest in the country is now battling to stay in the top 10. This should serve as a warning sign for British boxing — if broadcasters like Sky pull away completely, the sport risks fading into niche obscurity, losing crucial exposure that builds household names. When Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing decided to end a 25-year partnership with Sky in the U.K. to join forces with streaming service DAZN in 2021, Sky contemplated exiting boxing altogether, but ultimately chose not to. Instead, they handed a four-year exclusive broadcasting deal to the unheralded newbie promoter, Ben Shalom of BOXXER. Advertisement Shalom's tenure on Sky has been a failed experiment of sorts. The broadcast giant was hoping to replicate the success it had with Matchroom over recent years with another promoter and perhaps demonstrate that they were responsible for the triumphs more so than Hearn. But the run of boxing on Sky in the post-Matchroom era has been disappointing. There's been some success with BOXXER-led events on Sky, notably Amir Khan vs. Kell Brook in 2022 and Chris Eubank Jr.'s two high-profile bouts with Liam Smith in 2023, but overall the product has been underwhelming. Matchroom set the bar very high, creating stars and delivering pay-per-view events on a consistent basis with the backing of the powerful British broadcaster. BOXXER has managed neither. But then again, it was always a tall order to expect a promoter who had only done small-hall events until it arrived at Sky to suddenly fill Matchroom's shoes. After Matchroom's departure and BOXXER's uninspiring run on the platform, Sky wouldn't be blamed for giving up on the sport — yet it hasn't. Advertisement That the pugilistic art still appeals to boardroom executives is, in and of itself, a quiet victory for the sport. Chris Eubank Jr.'s two-fight series with Liam Smith was a rare highlight of the Sky Sports/BOXXER era. (Peter Byrne/PA Images via Getty Images) (Peter Byrne - PA Images via Getty Images) The importance of Sky's presence in boxing shouldn't be understated. Without Sky, the vast majority of boxing shows would reach a live audience of far less than 100,000 people in the U.K. — although some of the shows on Sky hover around that number anyway. Boxing needs to remain visible on big platforms to continue the success it has enjoyed in recent years in the U.K. Sky's boxing strategy moving forward is expected to see them become more selective about the fights they showcase. The broadcaster is understood to want a greater input into the shows and talent on offer, with a desire to continue to broadcast some of the fighters that it has helped build up. Advertisement The network will essentially become an open shop for promoters to pitch cards to. However, with the U.K.'s two biggest promoters, Matchroom and Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions, locked into exclusive promotional agreements with DAZN, the options will be limited for the time being. The Sauerlands' Wasserman Boxing houses a stable of fighters that includes Josh Kelly, Michael Conlan, Harlem Eubank and Lyndon Arthur, among others. They have struggled to put on well-rounded shows with the limited budget of Channel 5, but with the backing of Sky Sports, Wasserman could become a significant force in British boxing. Izzy Asif's GBM Sports has managed to promote the likes of Hughie Fury, Terri Harper, Maxi Hughes and rising Sheffield middleweight Shakiel Thompson since signing a short-term deal with DAZN in 2024. They are a promoter on the rise who have delivered enjoyable events on a shoestring budget and would also be a beneficiary of Sky opening its doors. Although neither has the firepower of Matchroom or Queensberry, both could fill gaps in Sky's schedule and offer some variety in the talent they showcase. In the absence of an exclusive partner, Sky would be wise to incentivize a range of promoters to build strong shows and earn the opportunity to benefit from Sky's marketing power and substantial budget. That kind of competition within their boxing output is precisely what Sky — and the sport of British boxing — needs moving forward.
