BoxRec

Anyone know what was the first bout ever to be on TV anywhere in the world?
Only I've found a candidate that's not listed on Boxrec.

Would this be Eric Boon v Arthur Danahar in 1939? I saw a programme for the fight on sale recently that claimed that was the case.

Cholo_cws wrote: ↑25 Mar 2023, 11:15 Would this be Eric Boon v Arthur Danahar in 1939? I saw a programme for the fight on sale recently that claimed that was the case.

That fight was listed in the GBOR

Fights were televised in America prior to the mid 1930's. Bennie Leonard boxed an exhibition in 1932 on television. I believe a boxing "demonstration" was televised in 1931 but the quality of the telecast was so bad only the fighters' faces could be seen. By 1932, the technology was so improved that there were not complaints about it.

It's been a while since I researched this so my memory is a bit hazy.

This is a little bit of a trick question. Max Baer-Lou Nova (1939) is often called the first fight televised. However, it's likely that this is just the most widely televised fight up to that time. Obviously, few people had TV sets yet. There really wasn't "Network Programming" Per se. Individual local stations (and there weren't that many in the 1930s) pretty much broadcast what they wanted.

So, there could have been a boxing match broadcast by one station and seen by a handful of people a few years before Baer-Nova.

Ambling Alp II wrote: ↑25 Mar 2023, 17:03 This is a little bit of a trick question. Max Baer-Lou Nova (1939) is often called the first fight televised. However, it's likely that this is just the most widely televised fight up to that time. Obviously, few people had TV sets yet. There really wasn't "Network Programming" Per se. Individual local stations (and there weren't that many in the 1930s) pretty much broadcast what they wanted.

So, there could have been a boxing match broadcast by one station and seen by a handful of people a few years before Baer-Nova.

.......and documented exactly nowhere.
I believe there is no "correct" answer to this particular question for the reasons you said.
Generally accepted answer?
Sure.
The " real " answer is lost to history imo.

This is what I found while doing some research in the British Newspaper Archive.

Birmingham Daily Gazette 22 August 1933 (also in a load of other morning papers)

There will be boxing at Broadcasting House tonight. A ring has been set up in one of the studios and Lord Lonsdale, a well known patron of boxing, will introduce a television programme at 11pm.
There will be a four round contest between two flyweights Freddy Baxter and Teddy Lewis, both of Bethnal Green. Mr CH Douglas will referee and Pat Ragan will be the MC.

Laurie Raiteri and Archie Sexton will follow with a three round exhibition,

The next morning the papers report Lewis won on points and the headlines read "Boxing on television - BBC surprise proves a success" - but nothing of it is listed on Boxrec

That is an interesting find.
You have to wonder how many people could possibly have seen it on TV?

Weekly televised pro boxing in New York City began in 1938. Tony Canzoneri versus Bummy Davis was televised from MSG in 1939; Nova-Baer 2(1941) has been incorrectly called the first bout televised from MSG. Two of Sugar Ray Robinson's amateur bouts were televised live.

But who owned a television set in 1938 ?
I always heard it (Television)was introduced at the New York's World's Fair in 1939.
Public People didn't even start buying TV sets here in the USA until about 1949

There's a book buy guy surnamed Romano all about the history of boxing on television and radio. He has a chapter about boxing on television. in the early 1930's. You'd find it very interesting.

People were definitely watching televised boxing in America in the early 1930's. Shocked me to read about it.

I'm going to guess there might have been 1000 TV sets in Britain around 1933