Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko’s heavyweight championship fight could be a record-breaking bout, with it expected to smash UK pay-per-view records by generating a whopping £50 million in total revenue.
Joshua, who is the heavy favourite to beat Klitschko for the IBF title and the vacant WBA Super and IBO titles, will pick up around £15 million for the fight. With it expected to pull in 1.5 million viewers, a figure that would trump Ricky Hatton’s loss against Floyd Mayweather Jr. back in 2007, its £19.99 box office price means that it should rake in around £30 million from PPV buys alone.
On top of this figure, Wembley Stadium have priced its tickets from between £60 to £2,200, putting ticket sales in the region of £8 million. Lucrative broadcasting rights purchased by the likes of HBO, Showtime and RTL have then added to this number, bringing the projected total up to £50 million and potentially making it the highest earning PPV boxing match in British TV history.
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Joshua is expected to beat Klitschko in London, continuing his undefeated streak and picking up two heavyweight championships in the process. Bookmakers Skybet currently have the 27-year-old priced at 2/5, while the 41-year-old Ukrainian is the outsider at 9/4.
Though Klitschko has proven dominant in the boxing world, he came undone in his last fight against Tyson Fury, who broke the former champion’s11-year winning streak. Many believe that Klitschko will hang up his gloves following his fight with Joshua, though the future of the veteran’s career could be determined by the outcome of the Wembley bout. The fight is scheduled for 10pm GMT, though is subject to change depending upon the rest of the undercard.
