For many around the world, the pay-per-view costs for the biggest boxing bouts have been an agonising sight. Due to the increase of illicit streams, TV rights holders have lost millions of dollars in revenue. With the fight between Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois approaching, His Excellency Turki Alalshikh entered as a lifesaver, promising to reduce the costs in order to address the problem.
The fact that tickets to the Joshua-Dubois bout would cost less than the usual rate was an added bonus. It’s interesting to note that during the undisputed bout between Tyson Fury and Alexander Usyk earlier this year, an estimated 20 million people streamed the event illegally, costing the fight £95 million in lost income. The price of PPV in the UK was £25, which was prohibitive for 18% of the UK-based users who were streaming it illegally. What are the new pricing, then? is the question.
Cutting costs: Turki’s next PPV venture
Michael Benson, the editor of talkSport, tweeted that the new ticket pricing for the Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois bout would be £19.95. In the UK, TNT Sports PPV and DAZN PPV will both stream the bout. Remarkably, His Excellency stated, “I dream of a PPV with a good price to make the fans happy and subscribe and get them to watch it lawfully,” in a recent interview with talkSport.
He went on to say that he has seen a lot of illicit streaming of fights with high pay-per-view costs, which the Saudi Royal believes is bad for boxing as a sport.His Excellency declared, “I will attempt to strive for our Riyadh Season shows to be less than $20 worldwide and less than £20 in England.”
It’s important to note that although the UK PPV pricing for the Joshua-Dubois bout have been verified, the US and other international prices have not yet been updated. When they saw this, a lot of boxing enthusiasts celebrated on social media and left comments on the post.
Is the Daniel Dubois vs. Anthony Joshua match still pricey in the United States?
Many viewed this as a positive development because decreased pay-per-view costs would encourage more individuals to take the lawful path. While saying the increased charges were reasonable for the card, one user applauded the decision.”That is a fairly reasonable cost for the card. Well done, everyone,” the commenter said. The fight is particularly significant for the UK because both boxers are from there.
While people did indeed celebrate the new prices, there were those who were indifferent to the update. This user wrote, “Free in my local pub.” In such a scenario, the establishment’s owner pays for the fight to attract more customers to the restaurant/pub.
The next user speculated on how much the fight may cost in the United States. The user wrote, “They’ll charge $80 here in the states.” However, the good news is that His Excellency has hinted at $20 PPV prices even in the states.
Meanwhile, this user seemed opposed to paying to watch a boxing match regardless of the price. The user wrote, “If you pay to view u a fool.” Warning: This could land people in a lot of trouble with the law.
Another user praised His Excellency, claiming it wouldn’t have happened without his involvement in the sport. “£19.95 for that card is great. Wouldn’t normally happen if Turk wasn’t involved. The way he’s overpaying these promoters/fighters, they’re happy to drop the price slightly,” the user wrote. Interestingly, HE has also promised to start a boxing league, as he expressed frustration with all the sanctioning bodies.
Alright, His Excellency Turki Alalshikh has done it once again. Whether this will help combat the illegal streaming issue is yet to be seen, but it definitely is a step in the right direction. What do you think about the move? Will it reduce illegal streams?
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