Matchroom Sport is a British-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]
Matchroom has had broadcasting agreements in the United Kingdom with DAZN, Sky Sports, ITV, and the BBC.
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]
As of 2023, boxing accounted for $235M of Matchroom's annual sales revenue.[16] A rising list of signed boxing stars and steady events aided its gaining popularity and viewership growth, with Hearn citing the streaming model with DAZN as a major success factor for the brand.[17]
In 2024, Hearn expressed an interest in exploring a 9pm main event start time for Matchroom fights.[18]
In February 2025, Hearn announced a partnership between Matchroom and event management vendor Victory Live to provide enhanced ticketing distribution and fan experiences.[19]
[20]
| Boxer
|
Nationality
|
Weight
|
Record
|
World Titles
|
| Murodjon Akhmadaliev
|
Uzbekistan Uzbek
|
Super-bantamweight
|
14-2 (11 KOs)
|
|
| Dave Allen
|
England English
|
Heavyweight
|
24-8-2 (19 KOs)
|
|
| Leo Atang
|
England English
|
Heavyweight
|
2-0 (2 KOs)
|
|
| Tiah-Mai Ayton
|
England English
|
Bantamweight
|
3-0 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Zelfa Barrett
|
England English
|
Super-featherweight
|
33-3 (18 KOs)
|
|
| Alexis Barriere
|
Canada Canadian
|
Heavyweight
|
12-1 (10 KOs)
|
|
| Reece Bellotti
|
England English
|
Super-featherweight
|
20-7 (15 KOs)
|
|
| Conor Benn
|
England English
|
Welterweight
|
24-1 (14 KOs)
|
|
| Taylor Bevan
|
Wales Welsh
|
Super-middleweight
|
6-0 (6 KOs)
|
|
| Dmitry Bivol
|
Russia Russian
|
Light-heavyweight
|
24-1 (12 KOs)
|
WBA, IBF, WBO, and The Ring Light-heavyweight World champion
|
| Junaid Bostan
|
England English
|
Super-welterweight
|
10-1-1 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Aaron Bowen
|
England English
|
Middleweight
|
7-0 (5 KOs)
|
|
| Pat Brown
|
England English
|
Cruiserweight
|
5-0 (5 KOs)
|
|
| Leli Buttigieg
|
England English
|
Middleweight
|
10-0 (3 KO)
|
|
| Marc Castro
|
United States American
|
Lightweight
|
13-1 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Jack Catterall
|
England English
|
Super-lightweight
|
32-2 (14 KOs)
|
|
| Cheavon Clarke
|
England English
|
Cruiserweight
|
10-2 (7 KOs)
|
|
| Khalil Coe
|
United States American
|
Light-heavyweight
|
10-1-1 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Kieron Conway
|
England English
|
Middleweight
|
23-4-1 (7 KOs)
|
|
| Joe Cordina
|
Wales Welsh
|
Super-featherweight
|
18-1 (9 KOs)
|
|
| Maisey Rose Courtney
|
England English
|
Flyweight
|
8-1 (0 KOs)
|
|
| Lewis Crocker
|
Northern Ireland Northern Irish
|
Welterweight
|
22-0 (11 KOs)
|
IBF Welterweight World champion
|
| William Crolla
|
England English
|
Super-welterweight
|
8-1 (6 KOs)
|
|
| Andy Cruz
|
Cuba Cuban
|
Lightweight
|
6-0 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Gary Cully
|
Republic of Ireland Irish
|
Lightweight
|
18-2 (10 KOs)
|
|
| Ishmael Davis
|
England English
|
Super-welterweight
|
15-3 (6 KOs)
|
|
| Nishant Dev
|
India Indian
|
Super-welterweight
|
4-0 (2 KOs)
|
|
| Mark Dickinson
|
England English
|
Super-middleweight
|
8-2 (2 KOs)
|
|
| Rhiannon Dixon
|
England English
|
Lightweight
|
10-1 (1 KO)
|
|
| Paddy Donovan
|
Republic of Ireland Irish
|
Welterweight
|
14-2 (11 KOs)
|
|
| Jaron Ennis
|
United States American
|
Super-welterweight
|
35-0 (31 KOs)
|
|
| Beatriz Ferreira
|
Brazil Brazilian
|
Lightweight
|
8-0 (2 KOs)
|
WBC female Lightweight World champion
|
| Aqib Fiaz
|
England English
|
Super-featherweight
|
14-1 (2 KOs)
|
|
| Johnny Fisher
|
England English
|
Heavyweight
|
13-1 (11 KOs)
|
|
| Raymond Ford
|
United States American
|
Super-featherweight
|
18-1-1 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Shakhram Giyasov
|
Uzbekistan Uzbek
|
Welterweight
|
17-0 (10 KOs)
|
|
| Jalil Hackett
|
United States American
|
Welterweight
|
10-1 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Terri Harper
|
England English
|
Lightweight
|
16-2-2 (6 KOs)
|
|
| John Hedges
|
England English
|
Cruiserweight
|
11-0 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Eduardo Hernandez
|
Mexico Mexican
|
Super-featherweight
|
37-2 (32 KOs)
|
|
| Richardson Hitchins
|
United States American
|
Super-lightweight
|
20-0 (8 KOs)
|
IBF Super-lightweight World champion
|
| Justis Huni
|
Australia Australian
|
Heavyweight
|
12-1 (7 KOs)
|
|
| Omari Jones
|
United States American
|
Super-welterweight
|
4-0 (4 KOs)
|
|
| Anthony Joshua
|
England English
|
Heavyweight
|
28-4 (25 KOs)
|
|
| George Kambosos Jr
|
Australia Australian
|
Super-lightweight
|
22-4 (10 KOs)
|
|
| Josh Kelly
|
England English
|
Super-welterweight
|
17-1-1 (9 KOs)
|
|
| George Liddard
|
England English
|
Middleweight
|
13-0 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Adam Maca
|
Albania Albanian
|
Super-bantamweight
|
3-0 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Israil Madrimov
|
Uzbekistan Uzbek
|
Super-welterweight
|
10-2-1 (7 KOs)
|
|
| Shabaz Masoud
|
England English
|
Super-bantamweight
|
14-0 (4 KOs)
|
|
| Molly McCann
|
England English
|
Super-bantamweight
|
1-0 (1 KO)
|
|
| Pat McCormack
|
England English
|
Welterweight
|
8-0 (6 KOs)
|
|
| Joe McGrail
|
England English
|
Featherweight
|
11-0 (5 KOs)
|
|
| Peter McGrail
|
England English
|
Featherweight
|
12-1 (6 KOs)
|
|
| Aaron McKenna
|
Republic of Ireland Irish
|
Middleweight
|
20-0 (10 KOs)
|
|
| Harley Mederos
|
United States American
|
Lightweight
|
9-0 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Ernesto Mercado
|
United States American
|
Super-lightweight
|
17-0 (16 KOs)
|
|
| Connor Mitchell
|
England English
|
Featherweight
|
0-0 (0 KOs)
|
|
| Zaquin Moses
|
United States American
|
Super-featherweight
|
5-0 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Skye Nicolson
|
Australia Australian
|
Super-bantamweight
|
14-1 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Eduardo Nunez
|
Mexico Mexican
|
Super-featherweight
|
29-1 (27 KOs)
|
IBF Super-featherweight World champion
|
| Elif Nur Turhan
|
Turkey Turkish
|
Lightweight
|
11-0 (7 KOs)
|
|
| Jai Opetaia
|
Australia Australian
|
Cruiserweight
|
28-0 (22 KOs)
|
IBF, and The Ring Cruiserweight World champion
|
| William Ortiz
|
Puerto Rico Puerto Rican
|
Super-lightweight
|
9-0 (5 KOs)
|
|
| Diego Pacheco
|
United States American
|
Super-middleweight
|
24-0 (18 KOs)
|
|
| Josh Padley
|
England English
|
Lightweight
|
17-1 (5 KOs)
|
|
| Lenier Pero
|
Cuba Cuban
|
Heavyweight
|
13-0 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Stephanie Pineiro
|
Puerto Rico Puerto Rican
|
Welterweight
|
9-0 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Hopey Price
|
England English
|
Featherweight
|
12-0 (5 KOs)
|
|
| Craig Richards
|
England English
|
Light-heavyweight
|
19-4-1 (12 KOs)
|
|
| Yankiel Rivera
|
Puerto Rico Puerto Rican
|
Flyweight
|
7-0-1 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Jesse Rodriguez
|
United States American
|
Super-flyweight
|
23-0 (16 KOs)
|
WBA, WBC, WBO and The Ring Super-flyweight World champion
|
| Leonardo Rubalcava
|
United States American
|
Super-lightweight
|
9-1-1 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Sandy Ryan
|
England English
|
Welterweight
|
8-3-1 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Shannon Ryan
|
England English
|
Super-flyweight
|
10-1 (1 KO)
|
|
| Jimmy Sains
|
England English
|
Middleweight
|
11-0 (10 KOs)
|
|
| Brandon Scott
|
England English
|
Featherweight
|
8-0 (1 KO)
|
|
| Callum Smith
|
England English
|
Light-heavyweight
|
31-2 (22 KOs)
|
|
| Dalton Smith
|
England English
|
Super-lightweight
|
18-0 (13 KOs)
|
|
| Liam Smith
|
England English
|
Middleweight
|
33-5-1 (20 KOs)
|
|
| Shakur Stevenson
|
United States American
|
Lightweight
|
24-0 (11 KOs)
|
WBC Lightweight World champion
|
| Ibraheem Sulaimaan
|
England English
|
Super-featherweight
|
9-0 (4 KOs)
|
|
| Katie Taylor
|
Republic of Ireland Irish
|
Super-lightweight
|
25-1 (6 KOs)
|
WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring female Super-lightweight World champion
|
| Teremoana Teremoana
|
Australia Australian
|
Heavyweight
|
8-0 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Jordan Thompson
|
England English
|
Cruiserweight
|
15-1 (12 KOs)
|
|
| Conner Tudsbury
|
England English
|
Light-heavyweight
|
3-0 (2 KOs)
|
|
| Hamza Uddin
|
England English
|
Flyweight
|
6-0 (3 KOs)
|
|
| Antonio Vargas
|
United States American
|
Bantamweight
|
19-1-1 (11 KOs)
|
WBA Bantamweight World champion
|
| Giorgio Visioli
|
England English
|
Super-featherweight
|
9-0 (6 KOs)
|
|
| Cameron Vuong
|
England English
|
Lightweight
|
9-0 (4 KOs)
|
|
| Conor Wallace
|
Australia Australian
|
Light-heavyweight
|
16-1 (11 KOs)
|
|
| Josh Warrington
|
England English
|
Super-featherweight
|
32-4-1 (8 KOs)
|
|
| Ben Whittaker
|
England English
|
Light-heavyweight
|
9-0-1 (6 KOs)
|
|
| Austin Williams
|
United States American
|
Middleweight
|
19-1 (13 KOs)
|
|
| Galal Yafai
|
England English
|
Flyweight
|
9-1 (7 KOs)
|
|
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