Hearn leaving Sky for DAZN

[dbf]

What happens if AJ wants to stay on Sky Sports PPV following the first fight with Fury? Will DAZN allow Hearn to promote on a rival network? Will AJ promote the rematch without Hearn? Or will DAZN pay a stupid amount for the fight?

Tyson Fury beating AJ surely messes up quite a few plans.

[Ruthless-RKO]

What happens if AJ wants to stay on Sky Sports PPV following the first fight with Fury? Will DAZN allow Hearn to promote on a rival network? Will AJ promote the rematch without Hearn? Or will DAZN pay a stupid amount for the fight?

Tyson Fury beating AJ surely messes up quite a few plans.

AJ and Whyte have options, they have contracts wth Sky. I beleive DAZN can stitll bid to have their fights, but knowing AJ and Whyte, they'll make their money on Sky.

I read that Matchroom will still promote their fights regardless.

[forcefraser]

I remember when Hearn first introduced us to DAZN

We were gonna get 12 cards a year that we're equivalent to standard PPV cards and then 4 MEGA cards where virtually every fight would be a main event or even PPV worthy on its own.

Never happened. Far from it.

[maverick23]

I remember when Hearn first introduced us to DAZN

We were gonna get 12 cards a year that we're equivalent to standard PPV cards and then 4 MEGA cards where virtually every fight would be a main event or even PPV worthy on its own.

Never happened. Far from it.

I think he realised fairly quickly that that model won’t work, particularly during a pandemic. He needs fighters that turn the dial. Guys like Danny Jacobs/Mo Hooker are really good fighters but not many people will subscribe to watch them fight. Similar with Andrade. I think his focus now is getting big names on the platform (Canelo for the US, AJ for the rest of the world) with them being supplemented by good, well matched shows (like the Andrade show where some of the prospects were in good fights and the recent Super fly fights).

[Ruthless-RKO]

I remember when Hearn first introduced us to DAZN

We were gonna get 12 cards a year that we're equivalent to standard PPV cards and then 4 MEGA cards where virtually every fight would be a main event or even PPV worthy on its own.

Never happened. Far from it.

I think he realised fairly quickly that that model won’t work, particularly during a pandemic. He needs fighters that turn the dial. Guys like Danny Jacobs/Mo Hooker are really good fighters but not many people will subscribe to watch them fight. Similar with Andrade. I think his focus now is getting big names on the platform (Canelo for the US, AJ for the rest of the world) with them being supplemented by good, well matched shows (like the Andrade show where some of the prospects were in good fights and the recent Super fly fights).

That DAZN money coudn't attract top US-based boxers though.

Insead they were paying Jessiie Vargas $3m per fight and other way more than they were worth.

[dbf]

What happens if AJ wants to stay on Sky Sports PPV following the first fight with Fury? Will DAZN allow Hearn to promote on a rival network? Will AJ promote the rematch without Hearn? Or will DAZN pay a stupid amount for the fight?

Tyson Fury beating AJ surely messes up quite a few plans.

AJ and Whyte have options, they have contracts wth Sky. I beleive DAZN can stitll bid to have their fights, but knowing AJ and Whyte, they'll make their money on Sky.

I read that Matchroom will still promote their fights regardless.

Interesting. Hearn effectively leaves Sky and then will be back on their flogging an AJ fight. Thats going to be awkaward for all involved.

[cormack]

It doesnt make sense to ditch sky for dazn , dont be surprised if a deal is done to put fights on both networks .
Matchroom would be laying out the red carpet for all and sundry by leaving sky ..

[Jimmy2020]

It doesnt make sense to ditch sky for dazn , dont be surprised if a deal is done to put fights on both networks .
Matchroom would be laying out the red carpet for all and sundry by leaving sky ..

Smith having a new role 'head of boxing development' in the commercial division suggests to me you may be right. Expect to see DAZN being available on the Sky platform, PPVs, decent international matches being bought in on an ad hoc basis, and similar deals. Maybe Sky won't produce their own stuff anymore

[stujones]

It doesnt make sense to ditch sky for dazn , dont be surprised if a deal is done to put fights on both networks .
Matchroom would be laying out the red carpet for all and sundry by leaving sky ..

Smith having a new role 'head of boxing development' in the commercial division suggests to me you may be right. Expect to see DAZN being available on the Sky platform, PPVs, decent international matches being bought in on an ad hoc basis, and similar deals. Maybe Sky won't produce their own stuff anymore

That's what Sky were doing though in essence just before the pandemic - we were getting the DAZN USA stuff. It clearly wasn't sustainable or DAZN simply pulled the plug when they launched DAZN UK.

The way Eddie is talking and his general demeanour about the "tough decision" suggest his fights will be shown on one or the other.

[dbf]

It doesnt make sense to ditch sky for dazn , dont be surprised if a deal is done to put fights on both networks .
Matchroom would be laying out the red carpet for all and sundry by leaving sky ..

Smith having a new role 'head of boxing development' in the commercial division suggests to me you may be right. Expect to see DAZN being available on the Sky platform, PPVs, decent international matches being bought in on an ad hoc basis, and similar deals. Maybe Sky won't produce their own stuff anymore

That's what Sky were doing though in essence just before the pandemic - we were getting the DAZN USA stuff. It clearly wasn't sustainable or DAZN simply pulled the plug when they launched DAZN UK.

The way Eddie is talking and his general demeanour about the "tough decision" suggest his fights will be shown on one or the other.

After watching his interview with Kugan yesterday, its clear he's done an exclusive deal with DAZN. He wants to control the production and choose the talent and DAZN will just purely be the place you can watch it. Sky would not agree to that, no way.

Hearn is going full on UFC mode, he clearly wants complete control of the sport, and by controlling all of the production he starts emulating his heroes McMahon and White. I mean who would want to be an away fighter if the whole broadcast is completely controlled by the promoter too? What Hearn wants is to sign up everyone and those not signed up are left on the outside scraping for dates and deals with other promoters.

Its ambitious but it probably wont work, although he could make DAZN/Matchroom the place to be if you want a big payday. Expect to hear him start talking about the Matchroom "roster" soon and launch "TUB" - the ultimate boxer - two teams captained by Tony Bellew and Dave Allen.

[Ruthless-RKO]

DAZN, Sky Sports and Eddie Hearn's Big Deal

Eddie Hearn’s decision to agree broadcast deal with DAZN in the UK and break with Sky Sports could lead to the biggest shake-up in British boxing in years.

Hearn is expected to launch his new five-year deal with another series of Fight Camp shows in the back garden of his old home in Essex this summer – this time with paying fans in attendance. But having ended one of the longest broadcasting partnerships in the sport, his decision potentially gives an opening to rival promoters keen to make an impact.

Matchroom has been promoting boxing on Sky since the mid-Nineties, when Eddie Hearn’s father, Barry, moved his star Chris Eubank to the channel with the plan of a world tour of fights, which started in west London against a little-known Brazilian, Mauricio Amaral, took in Cardiff and Manchester, with brief sojourn in South Africa, before he lost his world title to Steve Collins in Ireland.

This week Barry Hearn stood down as the group chairman of Matchroom Sports – including the jobs of chairman of the Professional Darts Corporation and the PGA EuroPro Tour - handing the roles to Eddie. It really is the end of an era.

Hearn had said it would be a difficult decision, but if rumours are correct, Sky made it reasonably easy for him. Hearn had always declared his intention to stay with Sky, but after negotiations with DAZN, when he returned for a final round of talks with Sky, it is understood that they decided against increasing their previous offer.

It will have been a tough call for Hearn. He had talked down allegedly when allegedly walked away from Sky to set up his own television channel a decade ago, but now he will be moving away from the huge reach of Sky and their marketing powerhouse, to strike out on a service that very few people subscribe to or have even heard of.

But Sky have slowly cut back their boxing budget over the past two decades, from the days when the likes of Ricky Hatton and Joe Calzaghe would feature in their regular Fight Night programmes without viewers needing to top up their subscription with pay-per-view.

Over the years, more and more of the Sky budget has been gobbled up by football, programming has been slimmed down outside pay-per-view events. Boxing has been hit far less than other sports. But it has been pay-per-view that has subsidised the rest of their boxing shows. With the pandemic having a savage impact on advertising revenue and plenty of long-term rights deals in place, money for new deals is tight.

Some could say that it is rich of Hearn to complain, having effectively dreamt up the business plan when he talked Sky into making him their exclusive promoter in 2012, ending the TV deals of Ricky Hatton and Frank Maloney, but he will have felt that Sky should have backed his vision.

DAZN certainly have. Having given him a reported $1 billion to launch his business in the United States, it is suggested that he will have a nine-figure purse for a five-year deal in the UK. Hearn declared this was the year they would go global – Uzbekistan is the latest country to see Matchroom shows, following, Italy, Spain, Mexico and, of course, Saudi Arabia.

Matchroom will still be doing business with Sky. In darts, the contract with Sky goes on to 2025. They have also promoted a wide variety of sports to be screened by Sky, including, pool, bowling, ping-pong, gymnastics and even fishing. Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte are understood not to be part of any deal, leaving them free to remain on pay-per-view. That could be with Sky – or ITV, or BT Sport.

But there is a risk. Having increased the spotlight on the sport, switching to a platform with barely any profile will be a serious test of Hearn’s plan to concentrate on social media to promote his fights. It is also likely that Sky will turn to another promoter – possibly Wasserman, which has just taken over Sauerland Event – to fill the gap. With Hearn not in the habit of signing boxers to long-term contracts, he might find some competition to re-sign some of his stars, although he is unlikely to be outbid purely on price.

[garethhop]

The ifl TV interview was the first time I'd heard Hearn talk about WWE. For the part of the interview building up to that point I was thinking "He's trying to emulate Vince McMahon" here......

Put aside scripted entertainment of wrestling (which I love by the way....) Vs actual sport thoughts for just a second.

WWE make their money from 4 key sources. The WWE Network (now part of NBC's online presence Peacock), built off an absolute load of new content each month - including from smaller wrestling promotions they have struck aggresive deals with - and a huge archive, Live Gates and Touring - hundreds of events a year, Merchandise sales, and a huge TV deal $435 million per year in the US driven by the right demographic watching a live event that can drive ratings but more importantly significant Advertising revenue.

And increasingly, in what is a huge financial success story (check WWE numbers), it's not about the wrestlers but the brand.

You can clearly see Hearn's strategy but boy is it a stretch to imagine Matchroom getting anywhere close based from the starting point.

I remain of the view that they are hugely reliant on DAZN landing key sporting deals very quickly to have even the slightest chance of making this something real.

[Ruthless-RKO]

The ifl TV interview was the first time I'd heard Hearn talk about WWE. For the part of the interview building up to that point I was thinking "He's trying to emulate Vince McMahon" here......

Put aside scripted entertainment of wrestling (which I love by the way....) Vs actual sport thoughts for just a second.

WWE make their money from 4 key sources. The WWE Network (now part of NBC's online presence Peacock), built off an absolute load of new content each month - including from smaller wrestling promotions they have struck aggresive deals with - and a huge archive, Live Gates and Touring - hundreds of events a year, Merchandise sales, and a huge TV deal $435 million per year in the US driven by the right demographic watching a live event that can drive ratings but more importantly significant Advertising revenue.

And increasingly, in what is a huge financial success story (check WWE numbers), it's not about the wrestlers but the brand.

You can clearly see Hearn's strategy but boy is it a stretch to imagine Matchroom getting anywhere close based from the starting point.

I remain of the view that they are hugely reliant on DAZN landing key sporting deals very quickly to have even the slightest chance of making this something real.

It's an hour long. At what point did he talk about this?

You're missing another thing. Youtube uploads. I don't know anyone who watches Raw and Smackdown live anymore. Sure the ratings have decreased, but like me, most people will watch the snippets they upload on youtube and you can view them numerous times. After a few days, certain clips already have 1 million viewers.

They upload a lot of content on there as well, some videos which have been on there for -5 years, have between 20 million - 50 million views. Think of the revenue.

[garethhop]

About 10-20 million dollars a year off youtube is what WWE make per year. Significant but a fraction of the TV deal.

It's just over 10 minutes in. But listen to him talk just before it.

[Jimmy2020]

The ifl TV interview was the first time I'd heard Hearn talk about WWE. For the part of the interview building up to that point I was thinking "He's trying to emulate Vince McMahon" here......

Put aside scripted entertainment of wrestling (which I love by the way....) Vs actual sport thoughts for just a second.

WWE make their money from 4 key sources. The WWE Network (now part of NBC's online presence Peacock), built off an absolute load of new content each month - including from smaller wrestling promotions they have struck aggresive deals with - and a huge archive, Live Gates and Touring - hundreds of events a year, Merchandise sales, and a huge TV deal $435 million per year in the US driven by the right demographic watching a live event that can drive ratings but more importantly significant Advertising revenue.

And increasingly, in what is a huge financial success story (check WWE numbers), it's not about the wrestlers but the brand.

You can clearly see Hearn's strategy but boy is it a stretch to imagine Matchroom getting anywhere close based from the starting point.

I remain of the view that they are hugely reliant on DAZN landing key sporting deals very quickly to have even the slightest chance of making this something real.

I thought the WWE were struggling and laying staff off, etc?

https://www.essentiallysports.com/wwe-n ... e-ratings/

[garethhop]

They made $200 million profit on almost $1 billion income last year. In a pandemic.

They fire staff just like any successful business.

[stujones]

The ifl TV interview was the first time I'd heard Hearn talk about WWE. For the part of the interview building up to that point I was thinking "He's trying to emulate Vince McMahon" here......

Put aside scripted entertainment of wrestling (which I love by the way....) Vs actual sport thoughts for just a second.

WWE make their money from 4 key sources. The WWE Network (now part of NBC's online presence Peacock), built off an absolute load of new content each month - including from smaller wrestling promotions they have struck aggresive deals with - and a huge archive, Live Gates and Touring - hundreds of events a year, Merchandise sales, and a huge TV deal $435 million per year in the US driven by the right demographic watching a live event that can drive ratings but more importantly significant Advertising revenue.

And increasingly, in what is a huge financial success story (check WWE numbers), it's not about the wrestlers but the brand.

You can clearly see Hearn's strategy but boy is it a stretch to imagine Matchroom getting anywhere close based from the starting point.

I remain of the view that they are hugely reliant on DAZN landing key sporting deals very quickly to have even the slightest chance of making this something real.

Although I believe WWE numbers are dwindling - I've been thinking about how boxing has been following wrestling for a while now (since the return of PPV in boxing) and matchroom have got to be careful that WWE numbers are dwindling and the pattern is similar to boxing.... It seems like from the wrestling the "story lines" get the bigger ratings than the actual matches - the build up and hype get more attention, this might be due to the scripted element of the actual matches but boxing is following a similar pattern. The biggest PPV fight in the UK (or one of) was a mismatch but was hyped to the hilts. The KSI vs Logan Paul thing also did well and Haye vs Bellew was practically out of the WWE the way it was hyped. Though from what I have heard from people who know far more about numbers than me, the clips from the various social media platforms building up the "raw beef", which has been exacerbated by the sky sports platform - does BETTER than the fights themselves. Whilst America is the land of hype, got to be honest, some of their biggest attractions aren't about the "selling" of the fight. Canelo doesn't throw punches in press conferences. What would get better viewing figures in the UK if it was on PPV - Canelo vs Callum Smith (another quiet type) or something like Haye vs Bellew, Haye vs Chisora, Chisora vs White etc. Undoubtedly for me it would be Canelo vs Smith in the states, but the "raw beef" fights in the UK.... but even so, from what I have read its the "raw beef" that does better figures than the fights.

Now, I am not saying it has NOTHING to do with the promoters, cos it does... but FW shows don't have the sky platform to promote the beef, not yet anyway - although BT are improving here. Yet FW using social media, maybe not to the same way, but has the IFL etc but yet not only is the figures for build up to these fights much poorer, so are the ratings for the fights themselves. My worry for Eddie and the new deal is as Barry Jones stated on boxing social, in essence Eddie is leaving Sky for another allegedly - the platform is much lower and smaller. Eddie has been keen to note "who cares" when it comes to the BT cards in the pandemic - he is running the risk of doing it thimself..... in essence who really cares about Cheesman vs Fowler..... we do, but we aint going to keep DAZN afloat and without that massive platform of sky sports, he might struggle.

Just look at some of the viewing figures linked to SSN and the ESL stuff, tag a boxing grudge match next to that and you'll get interest.

[Alba]

There’s news of a new channel launching too. Fightzone TV? 50 events a year! So basically 1 a week. All pro fights, title fights and boxing from all over the Uk. This could be what we’ve wanted. Real raw boxing like it used to be in Friday nights. Interesting to watch ..!

How much of that will actually end up being that BIBA pish?

[Rezzer1967]

There’s news of a new channel launching too. Fightzone TV? 50 events a year! So basically 1 a week. All pro fights, title fights and boxing from all over the Uk. This could be what we’ve wanted. Real raw boxing like it used to be in Friday nights. Interesting to watch ..!

How much of that will actually end up being that BIBA pish?

Where's this news come from? It's the first I've heard of it. Does anyone have anymore details about Fight Zone TV?

[maverick23]

The ifl TV interview was the first time I'd heard Hearn talk about WWE. For the part of the interview building up to that point I was thinking "He's trying to emulate Vince McMahon" here......

Put aside scripted entertainment of wrestling (which I love by the way....) Vs actual sport thoughts for just a second.

WWE make their money from 4 key sources. The WWE Network (now part of NBC's online presence Peacock), built off an absolute load of new content each month - including from smaller wrestling promotions they have struck aggresive deals with - and a huge archive, Live Gates and Touring - hundreds of events a year, Merchandise sales, and a huge TV deal $435 million per year in the US driven by the right demographic watching a live event that can drive ratings but more importantly significant Advertising revenue.

And increasingly, in what is a huge financial success story (check WWE numbers), it's not about the wrestlers but the brand.

You can clearly see Hearn's strategy but boy is it a stretch to imagine Matchroom getting anywhere close based from the starting point.

I remain of the view that they are hugely reliant on DAZN landing key sporting deals very quickly to have even the slightest chance of making this something real.

Although I believe WWE numbers are dwindling - I've been thinking about how boxing has been following wrestling for a while now (since the return of PPV in boxing) and matchroom have got to be careful that WWE numbers are dwindling and the pattern is similar to boxing.... It seems like from the wrestling the "story lines" get the bigger ratings than the actual matches - the build up and hype get more attention, this might be due to the scripted element of the actual matches but boxing is following a similar pattern. The biggest PPV fight in the UK (or one of) was a mismatch but was hyped to the hilts. The KSI vs Logan Paul thing also did well and Haye vs Bellew was practically out of the WWE the way it was hyped. Though from what I have heard from people who know far more about numbers than me, the clips from the various social media platforms building up the "raw beef", which has been exacerbated by the sky sports platform - does BETTER than the fights themselves. Whilst America is the land of hype, got to be honest, some of their biggest attractions aren't about the "selling" of the fight. Canelo doesn't throw punches in press conferences. What would get better viewing figures in the UK if it was on PPV - Canelo vs Callum Smith (another quiet type) or something like Haye vs Bellew, Haye vs Chisora, Chisora vs White etc. Undoubtedly for me it would be Canelo vs Smith in the states, but the "raw beef" fights in the UK.... but even so, from what I have read its the "raw beef" that does better figures than the fights.

Now, I am not saying it has NOTHING to do with the promoters, cos it does... but FW shows don't have the sky platform to promote the beef, not yet anyway - although BT are improving here. Yet FW using social media, maybe not to the same way, but has the IFL etc but yet not only is the figures for build up to these fights much poorer, so are the ratings for the fights themselves. My worry for Eddie and the new deal is as Barry Jones stated on boxing social, in essence Eddie is leaving Sky for another allegedly - the platform is much lower and smaller. Eddie has been keen to note "who cares" when it comes to the BT cards in the pandemic - he is running the risk of doing it thimself..... in essence who really cares about Cheesman vs Fowler..... we do, but we aint going to keep DAZN afloat and without that massive platform of sky sports, he might struggle.

Just look at some of the viewing figures linked to SSN and the ESL stuff, tag a boxing grudge match next to that and you'll get interest.

Viewing figures for wrestling in general have never been lower (in the US) than they are now but WWE had record profits in 2020.

I think when Eddie said about wanting to be similar to UFC/WWE I think he means that he wants to control all elements of the shows and promotion. Both UFC/WWE have shows and promotions across the world, are brands that people go to see regardless of who’s fighting/wrestling. They have historically had amazing shoulder programming to promote their shows. This is definitely something Matchroom will be doing now too (and they already do a bit) but they be looking to give content (like 24/7 style shows pushing fights and DAZN) away for free to a freeview channel.

[mickey1975]

I took two of my kids in 2006 to the wrestling in Manchester, sold out, incredible atmosphere. I took another two in 2019 and half the arena was sealed off.

[maverick23]

I took two of my kids in 2006 to the wrestling in Manchester, sold out, incredible atmosphere. I took another two in 2019 and half the arena was sealed off.

It’s very much a cyclical business. When they have stars that have crossed over to the mainstream or the audience love then viewing figures/audiences are great. When they don’t, like pretty much most of the last 5 years then it’s tougher. They changed their target demo between 2006 and 2019 to focus more on kids rather than aiming for young men (16-35) so everything’s a bit watered down now.

[stujones]

I think that in lines the difference between going for a wwe model in a "real" sport. As you said its watered down its content, which has negatively impacted on viewing figures but might have increased its revenue.....younger kids etc will buy things....parents will buy tickets / access to wwe network to shut the kids up and know its child friendly.....both in the promos/storylines AND in the ring.

Boxing.....cant get child friendly boxing, deaths and injuries happen.....really dont see an AJ action figure selling....Boxing by it's very nature will appeal to an older audience and that cant change.

Sure you can get Justin bieber to walk in a fighter.....but then might as well promote a justin bieber gig if you want that market

Its great the wwe are making record profits but how they are making their profits (e.g merchandise, and being a business model) I dont think can work for boxing. Stars that arent selling merch are got rid of ruthlessly....yes Eddie can get rid of non ticket sellers and keep on the likes of Dave Allen and Ebonie Bridges who clearly have appeal....ultimately it's a real sport, which is the problem.

UFC I believe still has the advantage that its 1 champion (I believe) no intercontinental stuff and the fights of the best fighting the best...plus its less frequent than boxing. Eddie will make more money I'm sure from AJ vs Fury than the rest of his matchroom cards combined (take out canelo)...part of the appeal of UFC is that as a sport each card feels like an event....but the majority of boxing isnt like that...as I said before who really gives a shit about cheesman vs fowler

[mickey1975]

I took two of my kids in 2006 to the wrestling in Manchester, sold out, incredible atmosphere. I took another two in 2019 and half the arena was sealed off.

It’s very much a cyclical business. When they have stars that have crossed over to the mainstream or the audience love then viewing figures/audiences are great. When they don’t, like pretty much most of the last 5 years then it’s tougher. They changed their target demo between 2006 and 2019 to focus more on kids rather than aiming for young men (16-35) so everything’s a bit watered down now.

Cena topped the bill in 2006.

[maverick23]

Their biggest revenue streams are the money TV networks pay for their weekly shows and also the monthly subs for their network. Merch sales will be something like 5/10% of what they get for their Tv shows.

They clearly can’t and won’t copy everything about the WWE or UFC models but I think they’ll do....

- Control every part of the show. Decide who does the commentary, interviews and if the fans aren’t happy then quickly make changes.

- Try and establish Matchroom as a brand. Will take a long time but they’ll be aiming for people to say ‘there’s a Matchroom show in town in a few weeks, let’s go’. Ive been to loads more boxing shows than I have UFC (where I’ve been to 10 or so) but the UFC shows are, on the whole, far better. There are competitive fights across the whole card and the stands are pretty much full from the first fight to the last fight whilst for the majority of boxing shows the fans tend to only come out for the main event, co-main or there’s a guy on the undercard who’s sold a load of tickets. Matchroom need to differentiate themselves by having the bulk of fights being competitive involving fighters that the fans are aware of. Not going to be easy to do!

- Do shows around the world with a high frequency of shows. They’re already doing this but will need to do even more.

- Have shoulder programming to promote all of their shows. They already do quite a bit on their YouTube channel (which is usually good, well produced stuff) and get it on as many platforms as they can. UFC have loads of pre shows on ESPN, WWE have their weekly shows on TV essentially building to a PPV (join their network to watch) and Matchroom will need to do something similar. Again will be difficult to do but not impossible.