Somewhere between the small-hall leisure centre shows and today’s streaming-obsessed schedule, British boxing stopped feeling like a sport and started feeling like a product.
I’ve been watching boxing properly since the late 90s and early 00s, when fighters moved through British, Commonwealth and European routes because that was the only way to climb. Matchmaking made sense. Rivalries felt genuine. And as fans, we trusted what we were paying for.
I used to travel up and down the country every weekend to watch Matchroom shows. Manchester, Liverpool, London, Sheffield — I didn’t care. If the boxing was good, I was there. I even flew to Germany and New York to watch their cards because it was always worth the money and the miles.
Today? Unless a show is practically on my doorstep, I won’t bother. Ticket prices have gone through the roof, quality has dropped, and the British boxing DAZN era has turned a once-authentic sport into something far more cynical. It’s exactly the concern I explored in my earlier piece asking whether British boxing is losing its identity:
Fans eventually vote with their feet — and their wallets. And British boxing is running out of goodwill to burn.
When Boxing Felt Reborn — The Sky/Matchroom Years
To be clear, this isn’t “bash Matchroom for the sake of it.” The Sky era genuinely rebuilt the sport in Britain.
For years, Matchroom delivered:
- competitive domestic rivalries
- proper British and European title fights
- prospects matched based on ability, not algorithm
- sold-out arenas
- undercards that had meaning
- main events that felt like genuine sporting moments
When Froch–Groves II filled Wembley, it didn’t feel like hype. It felt like the natural peak of a rivalry that had earned its spotlight.
Back then, boxing felt like boxing. The sport wasn’t being shaped by subscriber targets or content quotas.
Then DAZN Arrived — And Boxing Became “Content”
DAZN entered with a pitch fans desperately wanted to believe: one subscription, all fights, no PPV, simple and fan-first.
But the reality has been the opposite.
Today’s British boxing DAZN landscape is defined by:
- schedule-filling cards
- weaker undercards
- influencer headliners
- PPV returning at £20–£25
- subscriber churn dictating matchmaking
- hype overshadowing substance
I broke this shift down in detail in my analysis on how PPV pricing has shut fans out of the sport:
DAZN didn’t just break its “no PPV” promise — it replaced it with a model that’s even more expensive than Sky. And fans aren’t getting the quality to justify it.
The last-minute price cut for Eubank–Benn II wasn’t clever strategy. It was a distress signal.
Queensberry Joins DAZN — Competition Disappears
Frank Warren taking Queensberry to DAZN should, on paper, have made big British fights easier to make. Matchroom and Queensberry under one roof should mean fewer political barriers.
But that’s not what’s happened.
Instead, the move has created something closer to a closed shop. When two rival promoters rely on the same platform, the entire ecosystem changes:
- less incentive to take risks
- more in-house fights
- protected rankings
- rising prices
- less accountability for poor cards
I broke down the long-term implications when the move happened in my full analysis of the DAZN–Queensberry partnership:
The DAZN–Queensberry Shift and Its Impact on British Boxing
British boxing thrives when promoters compete to deliver the best product.
Right now, that competition doesn’t exist.
The Casual Fan Experience Is Worse Than Ever
Being a boxing fan in 2025 looks like this:
- a monthly DAZN subscription
- plus PPV fees
- plus inflated ticket prices
- with undercards that feel like mismatches
- influencer fights passed off as “massive moments”
- main events starting past 10:30pm
- and no guarantee of value
Compare that with the era when Sky, ITV and Channel 5 all had stakes in the sport. Cards were competitive. Fans felt part of something. And the sport felt accessible.
A brand-new fan tuning into a DAZN card today would think boxing is a confused mess behind a paywall. And they wouldn’t be wrong.
DAZN’s Broken Promise — The Numbers That Expose the Reality
Let’s be honest about why fans are walking away.
DAZN built its entire brand on one message:
“One subscription. No PPV. Everything included.”
That promise hasn’t survived.
Standard DAZN: £12.99/month
Does not include major fights.
PPVs: £20–£25
Total cost per event: £33–£38
DAZN “PPV Included” Tier: £34.99/month
The most expensive boxing subscription model ever launched in Britain.
As I argued in my breakdown of PPV accessibility, this pricing structure isn’t just flawed — it’s actively pushing fans out of the sport:
Arenas don’t empty by accident.
People aren’t buying fewer PPVs because they “don’t get it.”
They’re walking away because the value isn’t there.
Boxxer and the BBC — A Glimpse of How It Should Be
This is why Boxxer moving to the BBC matters more than people think.
No subscription.
No PPV.
No upsells.
Just boxing.
Their early cards already show more competitive matchmaking, more meaningful domestic fights, and more respect for fans than many DAZN events have in years.
When the Sky–Boxxer split happened, I broke down what it meant for the sport in my analysis of that deal’s collapse:
Boxxer on free-to-air TV is the closest thing we’ve had in years to boxing the way it used to be: accessible, honest and built for viewers — not for algorithms.
Did DAZN “Ruin” British Boxing… or Just Twist It?
Let’s be fair.
DAZN didn’t kill British boxing.
Matchroom and Queensberry aren’t villains.
And the sport isn’t beyond saving.
But the priorities have changed:
- hype over heritage
- spectacle over substance
- content over competition
- rising costs, falling quality
“It’s not that DAZN, Matchroom and Queensberry killed British boxing – it’s that they turned it into something unrecognisable and called it progress.”
Fans haven’t changed. The product has.
What Needs to Change — Immediately
Here’s how British boxing gets back on track:
- fewer PPVs
- PPVs only for genuine mega-fights
- competitive undercards
- British and European titles as standard co-mains
- real accountability for judging
- free-to-air partnerships restored
- prospects tested, not protected
- less fluff, more substance
Fans don’t expect perfection.
They expect value.
Why I Still Care
I criticise because I care. Because I still love this sport. Because I want the next generation to fall in love with boxing the way I did. Because I want nights that feel like events again, not content drops.
British boxing isn’t broken beyond repair — but someone has to care enough to fix it.
If You Care About British Boxing, Share This
If this piece hit home, share it. Comment on it. Tell your mates about it.
The more fans speak out, the harder we are to ignore.
And for honest, independent boxing coverage with no agenda, visit CMBoxing