This was a spectacular fight. Such a fight has not been seen since Don King took Mohammed Ali and George Foreman to the Jungle to rumble
I watched clips of the fight having been forgotten for the first time by Show Promoter Ezekiel Adamu
Last December, he had invited me to one of his fights at the Ilubirin enclave where he had foreign boxers spar with Nigerian fighters
For him, the economic potential of a resurging boxing scene cannot be measured
From infrastructure, to media, to hospitality and the rest
So when I saw this latest one, I reached out to him
As expected, the figures are huge
Total event budget clocked N1. 3b with over 500 direct and indirect jobs created
The fight generated about 1 billion views globally on all platforms generating millions in streaming and advertising revenues
Remember that Carter is Africa’s biggest streamer on one platform
The fight also attracted over 200 International tourists impacting aviation with about N200m spent on airline tickets and also spiking hotel revenues in and around the venue
20 fighters flew in from the UK, Spain, Ghana, Tanzania, South Africa and Congo amongst others
Revenue to the Government coffers in terms of taxes and other such levies yet to be ascertained represents a significant benefit
For Ezekiel, boxing comes with huge practical economic benefits that if properly exploited could begin to join the struggle for a National economic rebirth very succinctly.
This was a massive shot to the economy as could be gleaned from the figures
As Ezekiel concludes the conversation, he mentions the need for deeper government support especially in infrastructure – they were denied usage of the grand Onikan Stadium which was booked for a political event.
Whatever the case, Ezekiel and his team have shown very clearly how boxing could be turned into a major economic force if properly exploited.
Thanks
Duke of Shomolu
Last modified: May 3, 2026
