Why the Gulf states are betting on sport | Financial Times

Why the Gulf states are betting on sport | Financial Times:

Eddie Hearn was feeling emotional. Flanked by boxers Anthony Joshua, a former heavyweight champion, and Andy Ruiz Jnr, a Mexican-American fighter who shocked the sport by winning their bout in June, the British sports promoter was in Diriyah, a historical site in the conservative heartland of Saudi Arabia, talking up the next championship bout.

In comparison to the usual pre-fight press conference, it was a polite affair. The fighters avoided trading insults and praised their hosts. Interviews were conducted after prayers.

“Sometimes our sport is very narrow minded,” said Mr Hearn, the mud-brick remains of the ruling al-Saud family’s ancestral home providing the backdrop to the setting. “There’s Las Vegas, there’s New York, there’s London. [But] there’s a whole world out there and now there’s Saudi Arabia for boxing.”