How celebrity boxing is knocking out sport and turning it into a show.
At AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, last November was staged what was called the most watched streaming sporting event in history. There was everything that usually sets the stage for unrepeatable moments: a massive and articulate advertising campaign that had been in psychological percussion for over a year, millions of people eagerly awaiting from every corner of the globe, tens of thousands crowding the stands. Pepsi, hot dogs, candyfloss, the wild roar that greeted the arrival in the ring of Jake 'El Gallo de Dorado' Paul e 'Iron Mike' Tyson. Only a few people noticed the one big absentee, after all, who misses sport when there is entertainment?
To most, it did not seem surreal enough that a young and controversial youtuber would face an almost 60-year-old, who had been retired for two decades, in the ring. Many among the uninitiated found themselves debating the likely outcomes and balance of power. The special rules wanted by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation - heavier gloves (14 ounces) for greater protection and eight two-minute rounds instead of three - did not arouse suspicion. At the end of an almost choreographed match, Paul won on points by unanimous decision and without major surprises. Netflix and Most Valuable Promotions, owned by Paul himself, give thanks for the success.
This transformation did not start yesterday. On the contrary, storytelling and marketing strategies have always accompanied any boxing match, are even an essential element of it. Since the time of the gladiators, the public has been fascinated by the fight on an almost unconscious, ancestral level. It is attracted by the epic, by the clash to the death, by that animal duel that it needs to escape from its ordinary, rule-abiding life. No matter how many matches take place in a year, the spectator wants to be sure of buying a ticket to the most exclusive fight. So he is sold a narrative in which the athletes are icons, authentic personal brands, each with his own narrative before his own statistics.
Thus Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier faced each other in the The battle of the century back in 1971, an event of the highest sporting and technical value. What is decidedly different today is the definitive consecration of the trend to replace the athlete with the celebrity, the triumph of the hoax sold by the pound. In 2017, Floyd Mayweather e Conor McGregor have given rise to The Money Fightan event that generated over $600 million, despite being considered by many to be a pure exhibition rather than a real competition. The promotion of the fight, with theatrical press conferences and trash talk, captured the attention of the global audience, demonstrating how narrative can be as powerful as punch.
In that case it was at least two wrestlers, but in different disciplines with different rules. Recently, however, much expectation and interest has been generated by the never-before-played match between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, two tech bigwigs pretending to knock each other out in a cage, under the eyes of their respective lawyers. These events raise questions about the direction of boxing. The focus shifts from technique and athletic training to attracting spectators and generating revenue. While this brings new life and visibility to the sport, it also risks blurring the meritocracy and the very essence of the discipline, downgrading it to a fiction that is sometimes barely more sober than wrestling.
In an age when entertainment dominates, boxing is at a crossroads: maintain its sporting identity or fully embrace the role of media spectacle.
The challenge will be to find a balance that honours its history and meets the new demands of the public.
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