Tyson Fury, unbeaten in 35 professional fights and a multi-millionaire, rarely pays compliments, but he wants to send “cheers to the Saudis.”
He prepares to face Ukraine's Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh to become boxing's first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield in 1999. The British boxer praises Saudi Arabia's role in reviving a boxing industry whose golden days are long gone.
The Gulf kingdom is “currently the leading country in the world” in boxing, Fury told the Financial Times. “It used to be Las Vegas, now it's definitely Saudi Arabia. They're the biggest players in this game and I don't think we've seen the tip of the iceberg of what's going to happen yet,” Fury said. “They have a really big vision for this sport.”
This is underpinned by the unprecedented amount of money the Saudi government is prepared to inject into the sport since the country hosted its first major tournament in 2018. Boxers who fight in Saudi Arabia typically earn at least twice as much prize money as they do anywhere else, and the total prize money for Saturday's nine fights exceeds $100 million.
For critics, the hyperbole is another example of how Saudi Arabia uses sports such as soccer, golf and tennis to burnish its image and distract from its own human rights record, or “sportswashing.” Here's one example.
Rather, boxing officials say Riyadh has a role to play in helping the sport compete with other martial arts, such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship, which has soared in popularity and commercial value thanks in part to centralized decision-making. It points out the important role played by the government.
That it took this long for top heavyweights to step into the same ring is a sign of the fragmented structure that plagues the sport. Boxing's complex web of competing federations and rival promoters for influence and funding has often resulted in bouts that fail to provide the spectacle fans desire.
Todd DuBoff, president of Fury's US promoter Top Rank, said it was important for boxing to capitalize on high-profile fights like this, but that fans wanted to see more fights. He said: “You have to give people great moments. You can't go 25 years without a World Cup.”
Fury and Usyk have both already fought in Saudi Arabia, but efforts to promote Saturday's contest have reached new heights, with signs in the country's largest city reading “Historic Fight” in red letters. are scattered.
The battle is part of Riyadh Season, an annual, months-long event organized by the government's General Entertainment Authority (GEA).
Turki Al Al-Sheikh, a royal advisor and a driving force behind the GEA, has been working on sports and sports since 2016 as part of an ambitious program of economic diversification and social liberalization led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It is tasked with opening up the field of entertainment. Saudi rulers hope the big event will encourage Saudis to spend more of their income domestically and strengthen efforts to turn the kingdom into a global tourist destination.
The sport remains relatively niche in Saudi Arabia, as the country's boxing federation was only established in 1980. According to the federation, the number of boxers in Japan more than tripled to 2,000 between 2021 and 2023.
Al-Sheikh, a former police officer who describes himself as a boxing fan, says he wants to use the same strategy that helped turn the UFC and Formula 1 into multibillion-dollar companies. This also includes supporting a new Boxing He video game, television series, and documentary about the sport's greatest fighters.
As Saudi Arabia takes on a greater role in sport, Peter Frankenthal, director of human rights group Amnesty International, says questions should be asked about how Saudi Arabia uses sport.
“Glamorous events like Fury vs. Usyk rebrand Saudi Arabia as a 'sporting capital' while simultaneously diverting attention from the country's imprisonment of women's rights activists, suppression of free speech, and widespread use of the death penalty. “This is the purpose,” he said.
Officials deny the accusations, saying the money poured into sports is good for economic growth.
Boxing isn't the only sport that stands to win from Saudi checks. Saudi Arabia has lavished billions of dollars on sports in recent years, from golf and soccer to tennis and motor racing. The country is on track to host the Men's Soccer World Cup in 2034 after emerging as the sole bidder, and is even discussing the possibility of hosting the Olympics one day.
But Saudi authorities have found a target in boxing where the money talks even louder than in other sports.
On June 1, another big Riyadh season event will see five boxers from Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions take on five from rival promoter Matchroom Boxing. The two UK-based stables had been fierce competitors since the 1980s, but were brought together by Al-Sheikh.
Eddie Hearn, Matchroom chairman and one of boxing's top promoters, makes no secret of the pivotal role played by Saudi Arabia's wealthy.
“Everyone wants to work with him.” [Alsheikh] Because he clearly has the money to make these fights happen,” Hearn said. “He broke down walls. He opened doors for people to work together more and that can only be good for this sport.”
By centralizing rights, Saudi organizers were also able to secure global media deals. Sports streamer DAZN, which produces Saturday's live broadcast, will offer the game on pay-per-view in 200 territories.
“One of the things the sport has suffered from is fragmentation,” said Pete Oliver, DAZN's CEO of growth markets. “They're solving that problem, and it's creating a better product and a better experience for fans.”
Saudi Arabia's wealth helped make the biggest heavyweight fight of the century possible, but some of the sport's problems will be on display Saturday night.
The winner's reign as undisputed champion will be short-lived. Each federation has different rules that determine which fighters will challenge for their respective belts next. Immediately after Saturday's bout, the winner was stripped of the belt, allowing a mandatory challenger to compete for the belt, highlighting the still confusing structure boxing fans have to face.
At the same time, multiple promoters involved entered into deals with competing stations, splitting both viewership and revenue. In the UK, for example, matches will be shown on pay-per-view on DAZN, Sky Sports and TNT Sports.
Some sports officials have questioned whether an alcohol-free match in Saudi Arabia could generate the same global “buzz” as a match played in front of a packed and raucous crowd in London or Las Vegas. Some people have quiet doubts.
In 2022, the fight between Fury and Dillon Whyte drew a record 94,000 spectators to London's Wembley Stadium. Only 26,000 people watched a recent match in Riyadh.
But Ms Fury insists location is irrelevant as she is in line for a payday expected to reach tens of millions of dollars.
“When you're on Mars, you might be boxing on Mars,” he said. “People want to see the best games, the best matches, they want to see big events, and that’s what they’re getting in Saudi Arabia.”
