Netflix is making a splash in the arena of live sports.
Mike Tyson, the scandal-plagued former heavyweight champion, will go head to head with the YouTuber turned fighter Jake Paul in a “boxing mega-event” that will stream live exclusively on Netflix on July 20, the entertainment giant announced Thursday.
Tyson and Paul are set to duke it out inside AT&T Stadium, an 80,000-seat capacity venue in Arlington, Texas, and the home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, the company announced in a news release.
The event marks one of Netflix’s most ambitious forays into both sports programming and live entertainment as it seeks to cement its status as the premier at-home viewing destination in the United States, muscling aside traditional players in broadcast and cable.
Starting in January 2025, the company has reached a 10-year agreement to exclusively stream World Wrestling Entertainment’s weekly flagship show, ‘Raw’. According to a company filing cited by CNBC, the deal that made headlines was valued at more than $5 billion.
“I’m very much looking forward to stepping into the ring with Jake Paul at the AT&T STADIUM IN ARLINGTON, TEXAS,” Tyson said in a statement accompanying the Netflix announcement, capitalized words and all.
“He’s grown significantly as a boxer over the years, so it will be a lot of fun to see what the will and ambition of a ‘kid’ can do with the experience and aptitude of a GOAT,” Tyson added, using the acronym for greatest of all time.
Tyson, who will turn 58 when the Netflix fight airs, has become known as one of the most ferocious boxers and incendiary personalities in contemporary professional sports.
He was the youngest heavyweight champion in history, at just 20 years old, and his prowess in the ring led him to a run of 37 consecutive victories — 33 of them by knockout, according to Netflix’s summary of his career.
Tyson’s life has been characterized by troubling behavior and legal issues. He was convicted of rape in 1992 and served three years in prison. In the ring, ‘Iron Mike’ could be vicious, as when he bit Evander Holyfield’s right ear during an infamous 1997 bout.
Paul, who is 27 years old, started his career as an internet influencer by posting popular videos on the defunct Vine platform and establishing a large following on YouTube. He switched to boxing in 2018 and turned professional in 2020, and he currently has a 9-1 record that includes six knockouts.
It’s crazy to think that in my second pro fight, I went viral for knocking out Nate Robinson on Mike Tyson’s undercard, Paul said in a statement. “Now, less than four years later, I’m stepping up to face Tyson myself to see if I have what it takes to beat one of boxing’s most notorious fights and biggest icons.”
The livestreamed fight is the result of a partnership between Netflix and Most Valuable Promotions, a company co-founded by Paul and Nakisa Bidarian in 2021 with “the mission to provide more creative control to fighters,” according to Netflix’s news release.
Netflix established its sports content bonafides with the documentary franchise ‘Untold’, as well as series such as ‘Formula 1: Drive to Survive,’ ‘NASCAR: Full Speed’ and ‘Tour de France: Unchained’. The platform has hosted two live sports events to date: The Netflix Cup and The Netflix Slam.
Jake Paul to fight Mike Tyson set for July 20 on Netflix
Jake Paul rose to combat sports fame when he knocked out former NBA player Nate Robinson on the undercard of Mike Tyson’s exhibition boxing match with Roy Jones Jr. in 2020.
Now, Paul, the YouTuber-turned-prizefighter, and Tyson, the former heavyweight boxing champion, will meet again — as opponents — in what will be the most polarizing spectacle yet of the recent crossover boxing craze.
Tyson will face Paul in a boxing match July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, in the main event of a card that will air on Netflix, officials told ESPN. This will be the streaming company’s first attempt at combat sports and their third live sporting event overall. Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) signed a deal with Netflix for a boxing card last November 1, according to MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian.
Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson is a once-in-a-lifetime dream matchup, and I anticipate it will be the most-watched boxing event in modern history, Bidarian said in a statement.
It is unclear how the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which sanctions and regulates combat sports in the state, will approach what will surely be a matchup that garners plenty of criticism and attention. It is yet to be determined whether it will be classified as a professional fight or an exhibition.
Tyson is one of the greatest — and most fearsome — heavyweight boxers to ever live. But he will be 58 at the time of the fight. Paul, at 27, is three decades his junior.
Tyson was in good shape when he fought Jones to a draw in an exhibition boxing match on Nov. 28, 2020, and he has appeared good in social media videos of his training. Tyson has not had a pro fight since 2005 and was stopped in two straight bouts before hanging up the gloves. From 1987 to 1990, the boxer who was born in New York City held the undisputed heavyweight title.
“[Paul has] grown significantly as a boxer over the years, so it will be a lot of fun to see what the will and ambition of a ‘kid’ can do with the experience and aptitude of a GOAT,” Tyson said in a statement. “It’s a full-circle moment that will be beyond thrilling to watch, as I started him on his boxing journey on the undercard of my fight with Roy Jones, and now I plan to finish him.”
Paul (9-1, 6 KOs) went on to beat former UFC stars such as Nate Diaz, Anderson Silva and Tyron Woodley after the Robinson knockout in big-money main events. The fighter from Cleveland has since switched to fighting boxers with more experience than him to gain experience and prepare for one day competing for a world championship. Paul, who turned professional only four years ago, is coming off back-to-back first-round knockouts of veteran Andre August and Ryan Bourland.
It’s crazy to think that in my second pro fight, I went viral for knocking out Nate Robinson on Mike Tyson’s undercard, Paul said in a statement. “Now, less than four years later, I’m stepping up to face Tyson myself to see if I have what it takes to beat one of boxing’s most notorious fighters and biggest icons. Within just two and a half years of founding MVP, we’re about to produce the biggest fight in history, a fight in the biggest NFL stadium in the US, broadcast live, on the biggest streaming platform in the world — a testament to all we’ve accomplished in such a short amount of time.”
In a Netflix episode of ‘Untold’ last year, Paul was featured. Netflix, which is moving aggressively into live sports, streamed the Netflix Cup, a competition between Formula 1 drivers and golfers, and the Netflix Slam, a tennis match, over the past four months.
“Mike Tyson is one of the biggest icons in boxing history and Jake Paul is one of the biggest disruptors in boxing history,” Gabe Spitzer, Netflix vice president for nonfiction sports, said in a statement. “Saturday, July 20 will be pure drama in the ring in Texas. We are thrilled to partner with Most Valuable Promotions for this historic event and we can’t wait for these two to face off for fans all across the world on Netflix.”
