This was a spectacular fight.
Such a fight has not been seen since Don King took Mohammed Ali and George Foreman to the Jungle to rumble.
I watched clips of the fight, having been forgotten for the first time by Show Promoter Ezekiel Adamu.
Last December, he had invited me to one of his fights at the Ilubirin enclave, where he had foreign boxers spar with Nigerian fighters.
For him, the economic potential of a resurging boxing scene cannot be measured. From infrastructure, to media, to hospitality and the rest.
So, when I saw this latest one, I reached out to him.
As expected, the figures are huge:
- Total event budget clocked N1.3 billion, with over 500 direct and indirect jobs created
- The fight generated about 1 billion views globally on all platforms, generating millions in streaming and advertising revenues
- Remember that Carter is Africa’s biggest streamer on one platform.
- The fight also attracted over 200 International tourists, impacting aviation with about N200 million spent on airline tickets and also spiking hotel revenues in and around the venue
- 20 fighters flew in from the UK, Spain, Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa and Congo, amongst others
Revenue to the Government coffers in terms of taxes and other such levies yet to be ascertained represents a significant benefit.
For Ezekiel, boxing comes with huge practical economic benefits that, if properly exploited, could begin to join the struggle for a National economic rebirth very succinctly.
This was a massive shot to the economy, as could be gleaned from the figures.
As Ezekiel concludes the conversation, he mentions the need for deeper government support especially in infrastructure – they were denied usage of the grand Onikan Stadium, which was booked for a political event.
Whatever the case, Ezekiel and his team have shown very clearly how boxing could be turned into a major economic force if properly exploited.
