Mike Tyson (Black Gloves) faces Jake Paul (Silver Gloves) on November 15, 2024 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Kevin Jairaj USA TODAY Sports via Reuters
Friday’s highly anticipated boxing match between former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul will be remembered for more than just its unique card.
Matches are shown in Netflix According to news released by Netflix, the event is the most watched global sports event in history, with 65 million simultaneous live broadcasts worldwide and a total live audience of 108 million. The company said the fight between Amanda Serrano and Katie Taylor ahead of Tyson’s fight with Paul averaged 74 million live viewers worldwide, making it the most-watched professional show ever in the United States. Women’s sports events, with 47 million viewers.
The event also attracted several other winincluding becoming the largest boxing gate in history outside of Nevada.
Tyson and Paul were both paid tens of figures, according to Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions, which promoted the fight. He said Serrano and Taylor were paid record amounts in women’s boxing.
The event is crucial for Netflix as it prepares to broadcast National Football League games on Christmas Day, its first live broadcast of America’s most popular sport. Viewers complained about buffering issues, but chief content officer Bela Bajaria said she wasn’t worried about the company’s capabilities stream NFL games.
Netflix isn’t the first streaming company to get into live sports. Amazon has been broadcasting Thursday Night Football games since 2022, and NBCUniversal’s Peacock aired last season’s NFL playoffs.
Disclosure: Peacock is the streaming service of CNBC parent company NBCUniversal.
