Golden Boy Promotions Partners With Facebook To Bring Live Boxing For Free To The World

LOS ANGELES, July 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Golden Boy Promotions is excited to launch an innovative partnership with Facebook to bring live boxing and original programming to a global community of fans on the platform.

The first of five live fight nights on Facebook will debut on August 11 and will feature Jesus Rojas (26-1-2, 19 KOs) defending his WBA World Featherweight Title against Joseph "JoJo "Diaz Jr. (26-1, 14 KOs) at the world-famous Avalon Theater in Hollywood. The second live fight will feature light heavyweight contender Sullivan Barrera (21-2, 14 KOs) against a soon-to-be announced opponent on August 18 from the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Golden Boy Promotions is also proud to announce that Kathy Duva's Main Events will participate in the live series. The action will be available to fans in the U.S. on Facebook Watch and globally via the Golden Boy Promotions Page.

"This game-changing deal for the sport of boxing places Golden Boy Promotions and its stable of fighters at the intersection of live sports mega-casting and ultimate fan engagement. Our team is now positioned to present world-class boxing from Silicon Valley, to Madison Avenue, to Hollywood and to the rest of the world. The reach of Facebook is just incredible, and our sponsorship conversations will truly resonate with brands across all categories," said Oscar De La Hoya, Chairman and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions.

Golden Boy Media and Entertainment will serve as the production entity producing the live fights and original programming. De La Hoya will serve as Executive Producer and will invoke his extremely high standards across the board and push for entirely new approaches to presenting the sport to the Facebook audience. For example, the live broadcasts will incorporate the real-time fan interaction and engagement made possible by Facebook's social video platform.

"We're thrilled to team with Golden Boy Promotions to make Facebook a home for championship-caliber boxing this year," said Devi Mahadevia, North America Live Sports Programming Lead at Facebook. "Through this unique partnership, a global community of sports fans will have free access to some of boxing's most exciting live bouts and be able to interact with the action like never before."

The deal has several underlying elements that will work in harmony to heighten the sport of boxing on a global scale. The live boxing series will be bolstered with strategic shoulder programming, including rebroadcasts of past fights featuring commentary from the boxers themselves. Shoulder programming will also feature major celebrities, prominent influencers, and top-tier boxing authorities from print, TV and the internet. The debut episode of this complementary content will be on July 13, with details to be announced.

This blueprint follows Golden Boy's charter to produce live and original programming for its distribution partners and its owned operated channels such as CaneloGGG.com, GoldenBoyPPV.com, ESPN, and RingTV.com.

"Our goal is to provide the best fights in the world to the largest audiences across the globe. Through our amazing partnership with Facebook, Golden Boy Promotions can now truly grow the sport organically. We now have the ability to reach and speak to younger fans, while at the same time making our fighters and matches available to a larger audience for free on the world's strongest and most prolific social media platform," said Eric Gomez, President of Golden Boy Promotions.

With Golden Boy's commitment to making the world's greatest fights, they have partnered with Kathy Duva's Main Events. This unique partnership will beautifully cultivate boxing on Facebook as it bolsters the number of world-class fighters to be featured and will ensure that audiences are treated with the best matchups possible.

Main Events CEO, Kathy Duva, said, "Main Events has a rich history in this sport; boxing is in our DNA. For too long, promotional companies have been at odds over a limited number of television dates. We look now to a future with Facebook with unlimited opportunity, where promoters can work together to best serve the interests of the fighters and fans all over the world."

Boxing is changing. The way the sport is watched is changing. Golden Boy Promotions is adapting to these changes to ensure that it remains at the pinnacle of the sport for years to come. This revolutionary deal will give fans great matchups at no cost, thus powering the sport for growth across new and existing demographics.

To stay up-to-date on the latest Golden Boy Promotions content and add episodes to their Watchlists, fans should follow the Golden Boy Promotions Page.

About Golden Boy Promotions:
Los Angeles-based Golden Boy Promotions was established in 2002 by Oscar De La Hoya, the first Hispanic to own a national boxing promotional company. Golden Boy Promotions is one of boxing's most active and respected promoters, presenting shows in packed venues around the United States on networks such as HBO, ESPN, ESPN Deportes and EstrellaTV.

About Facebook Watch:
Facebook Watch is a place to discover and enjoy shows on Facebook. Home to a wide range of shows – from scripted comedy and drama, to competition and reality series, to individual creators and live sports – Facebook Watch is a video platform where episodic content, community and conversation come together. This is a personalized viewing experience, where you can discover new series based on what your friends are watching and catch up on the shows you follow. Facebook Watch is available for free on mobile apps across Apple and Android, on desktop, laptop and on TV apps listed here: https://videoapp.fb.com/.

About Main Events:
Internationally recognized as one of the top boxing promotional firms in the world, Main Events has promoted boxing legends Evander Holyfield, Arturo Gatti, Lennox Lewis, Pernell Whitaker and many more. Main Events was founded in 1978 by Hall-of-Fame promoter Dan Duva, who passed away in 1996, and is now run by his widow, Kathy Duva. Main Events is committed to promoting quality fights that boxing fans want to see. Forty years after the company's birth, Main Events is still turning out boxing stars and future world champions.

CONTACTS:
Ramiro Gonzalez/Gabriel Rivas, Golden Boy Promotions: (213) 489-5631
Ellen Haley, Main Events: [email protected], (973) 903-6715

SOURCE Golden Boy Promotions