Matchroom Sport

Last updated

Matchroom Sport
Company typePrivate
IndustrySports promotion
Headquarters Brentwood, Essex
Key people
Barry Hearn
Eddie Hearn
Website www.matchroom.com

Matchroom Sport is a UK-based sporting event promotions company founded by Barry Hearn and run by him and his son Eddie Hearn. It first came to attention in the sports of snooker and boxing and is also involved in pool, bowling, golf, fishing, darts, table tennis, poker and gymnastics. The company is based in Brentwood, Essex. [1]

Contents

Matchroom has had broadcasting agreements in the United Kingdom with DAZN, Sky Sports, ITV, and the BBC.

History

Matchroom formed in 1982 concentrating on snooker management with the likes of Steve Davis, Dennis Taylor, and Jimmy White under contract. It sponsored two non-ranking tournaments, the Matchroom Professional Championship (1986–1988, restricted to its contracted players) and Matchroom League (1987–1994). A novelty song called "Snooker Loopy" by "Chas & Dave and The Matchroom Mob" reached number 6 in the UK Singles Chart in 1986, with five Matchroom players featured on backup vocals and in the video.

Hearn's first foray into boxing promotion was the Frank Bruno vs. Joe Bugner heavyweight clash in 1987 in front of 35,000 people at White Hart Lane. [2] [3]

The range of sports increased in 1994 with the Mosconi Cup, an event which sees teams from Europe and the United States compete in a 9-ball pool tournament. [4] [5] It has become a major event on the professional pool calendar. [6]

Over the years, Matchroom's portfolio under Hearn grew, taking a majority stake in the Professional Darts Corporation in 2001, helping oversee a growth in the sport. [3] Matchroom Sport also promote the World Cup of Pool, a national team scotch doubles event, and the World Pool Masters, an annual nine-ball event. [7]

In 2002, the company formed PGA EuroPro Tour, the UK's leading developmental golf tour, in association with the PGA. [8] Later, in the 2000s, came ten pin bowling's Weber Cup. [9] In 2009, Barry Hearn became the majority shareholder in World Snooker Tour Ltd. Since then the sport has grown, with prize money increased and new events introduced worldwide. [10]

More recently, Matchroom has launched the World Championship of Ping Pong, [11] Superstars of Gymnastics, British Basketball All-Stars, [12] and British Fast5 Netball All-Stars.

In May 2018, Matchroom Boxing agreed five-year deal with DAZN reportedly worth £740 million to promote 16 fights in the US on the channel. [13] In June 2021, both firms extended its agreement. [14]

In April 2021, Barry Hearn stepped down as chairman with his son Eddie taking over the role. Barry will continue as president in an advisory role, while Eddie takes over as head of the PGA EuroPro tour, alongside overseeing Matchroom's wider operations and continuing to head the boxing division. [15]

Boxing

Current stable

[16]

BoxerNationalityWeightSignedTitle
Nikita Ababiy Flag of the United States.svg American Middleweight 17 July 2018
Murodjon Akhmadaliev Flag of Uzbekistan.svg Uzbekistan Bantamweight 25 April 2019
Demetrius Andrade Flag of the United States.svg American Middleweight 17 July 2018 WBO middleweight champion
Qais Ashfaq Flag of England.svg English Bantamweight 1 February 2018
Martin Bakole Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg Congolese Heavyweight 10 July 2019
Zelfa Barrett Flag of England.svg English Super-featherweight March 2020 Commonwealth super-featherweight champion
Reece Bellotti Flag of England.svg English Featherweight 30 June 2015
Conor Benn Flag of England.svg English Welterweight 30 March 2016
Chris Billam-Smith Flag of England.svg English Cruiserweight WBO cruiserweight champion
Dmitry Bivol Flag of Russia.svg Russian Light-heavyweight 15 January 2019 WBA light-heavyweight champion
Arthur Biyarslanov Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canadian Light-welterweight 29 March 2019
Cecilia Brækhus Flag of Norway.svg Norwegian Welterweight 22 October 2019
Joshua Buatsi Flag of England.svg English Light-heavyweight 5 June 2017
Ricky Burns Flag of Scotland.svg Scottish Lightweight 11 March 2013
Felix Cash Flag of England.svg English Middleweight 11 May 2016 Commonwealth middleweight champion
Marc Castro Flag of the United States.svg American Featherweight
Ted Cheeseman Flag of England.svg English Light-middleweight 9 April 2015 British light-middleweight champion
Souleymane Cissokho Flag of France.svg French Light-middleweight
Kieron Conway Flag of England.svg English Light-middleweight 12 July 2019
Joe Cordina Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Welsh Lightweight 1 February 2017 British lightweight champion
Shannon Courtenay Flag of England.svg English Super-featherweight
Robbie Davies Jr Flag of England.svg English Light-welterweight
Rhiannon Dixon Flag of England.svg English Lightweight WBO female lightweight World champion
John Docherty Flag of Scotland.svg Scottish Super-middleweight 11 July 2018
Sam Eggington Flag of England.svg English Light-middleweight 1 October 2014
Alexis Espino Flag of the United States.svg American Middleweight 28 October 2018
Juan Francisco Estrada Flag of Mexico.svg Mexican Super-flyweight 28 June 2019 WBA (Super) and The Ring super-flyweight champion
Tevin Farmer Flag of the United States.svg American Super-featherweight 23 August 2018
Aqib Fiaz Flag of England.svg English Lightweight
Rocky Fielding Flag of England.svg English Super-middleweight 6 June 2012
Scott Fitzgerald Flag of England.svg English Light-middleweight 21 September 2015 British light-middleweight champion
Raymond Ford Flag of the United States.svg American Super-featherweight
Charles Frankham Flag of England.svg English Featherweight 14 January 2019
Kid Galahad Flag of England.svg English Featherweight
Jordan Gill Flag of England.svg English Featherweight 29 October 2018
Shakhram Giyasov Flag of Uzbekistan.svg Uzbekistan Welterweight 25 April 2019
Devin Haney Flag of the United States.svg American Lightweight 25 April 2019 WBC lightweight champion
Terri Harper Flag of England.svg English Super-featherweight 24 September 2019
John Hedges Flag of England.svg English Super-middleweight
Filip Hrgović Flag of Croatia.svg Croatian Heavyweight 14 February 2019
Daniel Jacobs Flag of the United States.svg American Middleweight 23 September 2017
Callum Johnson Flag of Scotland.svg Scottish Light-heavyweight 30 June 2015
Natasha Jonas Flag of England.svg English Lightweight 20 June 2017
Otha Jones III Flag of the United States.svg American Welterweight 16 January 2019
Anthony Joshua Flag of England.svg English Heavyweight 24 July 2013
Josh Kelly Flag of England.svg English Welterweight 8 February 2017
Israil Madrimov Flag of Uzbekistan.svg Uzbekistan Light-middleweight 7 March 2019
Magomedrasul Majidov Flag of Uzbekistan.svg Uzbekistan Heavyweight 10 September 2019
Florian Marku Flag of Albania.svg Albanian Welterweight 27 November 2020
Savannah Marshall Flag of England.svg English Super-middleweight 1 August 2019
Julio Cesar Martinez Flag of Mexico.svg Mexican Flyweight 11 October 2019 WBC flyweight champion
Reshat Mati Flag of the United States.svg American Lightweight 17 July 2018
Lawrence Okolie Flag of England.svg English Cruiserweight 18 January 2017
Diego Pacheco Flag of the United States.svg American Middleweight 5 October 2018
Hopey Price Flag of England.svg English Super-bantamweight 11 October 2018
Craig Richards Flag of England.svg English Light-heavyweight
Lewis Ritson Flag of England.svg English Light-welterweight 10 October 2017
Srisaket Sor Rungvisai Flag of Thailand.svg Thai Super-flyweight 30 January 2019
Shannon Ryan Flag of England.svg English Super-flyweight March 2023 WBA female super-flyweight International champion
Billy Joe Saunders Flag of England.svg English Super-middleweight 13 August 2019
Ellie Scotney Flag of England.svg English Super-bantamweight IBF, WBO and The Ring female super-bantamweight World champion
Callum Smith Flag of England.svg English Super-middleweight 3 October 2012
Dalton Smith Flag of England.svg English Light-welterweight 21 March 2019
Katie Taylor Flag of Ireland.svg Irish Lightweight 27 October 2016 WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring female lightweight champion
James Tennyson Ulster Banner.svg Northern Irish Lightweight
Jessie Vargas Flag of the United States.svg American Light-middleweight 17 July 2018
Josh Warrington Flag of England.svg English Featherweight February 2020
Martin Joseph Ward Flag of England.svg English Super-featherweight 31 May 2012
Fabio Wardley Flag of England.svg English Heavyweight British, Commonwealth and WBO European heavyweight champion
Dillian Whyte Flag of England.svg English Heavyweight 20 May 2016
Thomas Whittaker Hart Flag of England.svg English Light-heavyweight
Austin Williams Flag of the United States.svg American Middleweight 26 February 2019
Gamal Yafai Flag of England.svg English Super-bantamweight
Khalid Yafai Flag of England.svg English Super-flyweight 14 May 2012
Daniyar Yeleussinov Flag of Kazakhstan.svg Kazakhstani Welterweight 5 March 2018
Zhang Zhilei Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Chinese Heavyweight 24 September 2020
Canelo Alvarez Flag of Mexico.svg Mexican Super-middleweight 19 December 2020 WBA, WBC, WBO, IBF, and The Ring super middleweight champion

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References

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  9. "About".
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  12. "Home ⋆ All Stars Basketball". All Stars Basketball.
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  15. "Barry Hearn replaced by son Eddie as chairman of Matchroom". BBC Sport. 20 April 2021.
  16. "Boxers Archive - Matchroom Boxing". Matchroom Boxing.