Much has been said and written about Saudi Arabia’s national anthem being played at Wembley ahead of Saturday night’s big fight between Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois.
Most of it was nonsense. It is complete nonsense to claim that the Saudi national anthem took prominence in our national stadium.
It’s always been the case that the host country’s national anthem comes second, which is exactly what happened last weekend, so I don’t understand why anyone would worry about the Saudis coming first.
In the past, if you went to a fight promoted by Don King, he would play the American national anthem, regardless of whether there were American fighters involved. When Ricky Hatton fought Manny Pacquaio in Las Vegas, they played the British national anthem, followed by the Philippine national anthem and then the American one.
This is nothing new, so I can’t understand why it has suddenly become a problem. Because they are the Saudis? Why, what’s the big problem with them?
Frank Warren responds to Simon Jordan’s criticism of Saudi Arabia’s influence on UK sport
Before the British national anthem was played for both fighters, the Saudi anthem took center stage.
The Wembley showdown between Anthony Joshua (left) and Daniel Dubois (right) was the final offering of the ‘Riyadh Season’ and the second night of fighting outside the Kingdom.
People wouldn’t have attended the fight if they really had a problem with Saudi investment. In the lead-up, events promoting the fight were held at iconic London venues such as Guildhall and Trafalgar Square. Were there protests? No. Was there only one banner? No. I drive around London every day and see people protesting about one thing or another, but I didn’t see any before the fight, so the whole argument is complete rubbish.
And contrary to what some have suggested, there were no mass boos when the Saudi national anthem was played. Yes, there were few people who did it, but I’ve been in fights when the ‘visiting’ fighter’s national anthem actually gets booed and that’s embarrassing. That’s why I don’t like playing national anthems in case that happens, but it didn’t happen at Wembley in large numbers.
Instead of worrying about it, we should celebrate the fact that we saw a historic event at Wembley, involving two British boxers. And we must remember that this only happened thanks to the investment of another country that wants to see the sport prosper and has taken it to heart to say that this is the best country to invest in because it has the most passionate and patriotic fans.
That’s why they support British boxing and that’s what they’ve done.
So apart from Simon Jordan, who wrote about the issue earlier this week, who else is worried about it?
For Simon, the whole show was negative for boxing, but I don’t understand it. Ok, so someone with an agenda will point out some boos because it fits his narrative, but that wasn’t a big deal that night and if anyone claims it was, they’re a liar.
Mail Sport columnist Simon Jordan said he believes the UK is losing its sporting soul to the Saudis.
Turki Alalshikh has invested huge resources into turning Saudi Arabia into a boxing power.
Warren has seen his boxing promotion benefit greatly from increased investment from the Saudis.
Instead of being so narrow-minded, why don’t the detractors open their eyes and embrace other people’s cultures like the Saudis are trying to embrace ours by inviting us to bring our Western sport to their country?
They have started attracting young men and girls to gyms in Saudi Arabia. The first women’s title fight in Saudi Arabia is approaching. Who would have thought it a year or two ago? That’s what’s really happening.
And instead of focusing on the fact that the Saudi national anthem was played, look at all the positives. Hotels and restaurants around Wembley enjoyed brisk business. This event generated several million pounds throughout the week leading up to the fight. How can that be bad for our economy, our country and our sport? We had massive entertainment and an incredible show for British fight fans. That is why it is petty and vindictive to choose the national anthem as a theme and ignore all the positive aspects.
The fight was a small part of the Riyadh Season, a cultural event that includes different sports, music, dance and poetry from all over: the Middle East, the Far East and the West. It’s bringing all of these experiences to a very young population in Saudi Arabia, where around 75 percent are under 35 years old and are the biggest users of social media.
They have a budget that is not about boxing, but about promoting the Riyadh season, promoting Saudi Arabia and the capital and bringing big events there for its population.
So yes, Riyadh’s season was everywhere at Wembley, but that’s life, that’s globalization and it’s not going to change. That is where we are and the fact is that the fight would not have taken place without Saudi Arabia’s participation.
Eddie Hearn has also played a key role in bringing big name fights to Saudi Arabia.
Roman Abramovich (right) transformed Chelsea into an elite team in European football thanks to his enormous wealth before being ousted in 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
I also don’t understand the argument that it’s a problem where the money came from. There is no one more patriotic than me but it would be ridiculous if sport did not accept money from other cultures. Boxing is global and, like football, money from all over the world has been invested in it. Just like in rugby, tennis and golf.
If you ask Chelsea fans if they would rather go back to the days of Ken Bates or the era of Roman Abramovich, I think we all know the answer. The same goes for Manchester City: would their fans love the previous owners or the current ones?
Haven’t they improved the Premier League and helped make it the best in the world? Of course. Not only have they done so, but they have also invested in Britain. Isn’t that a good thing?
Simon claims that by embracing the Saudis, something has been taken away from the structure of boxing. Do you ask the 98,000 spectators at Wembley if they had fun and if they enjoyed it? Ask the boxers on the card who would never have appeared without the Saudi investment.
Did they pay you well? Did they get the biggest wallets possible? Yes they did. Do we earn money? Yes, of course we are, we are professional promoters, it’s what we do for a living.
Would Simon have accepted Saudi money when Crystal Palace was on its knees under his ownership? Of course he would have done it and not only would he have accepted it, but he would have dyed his hair green!
Daniel Dubois triumphed in an epic clash between Britons at Wembley, enjoyed by almost 100,000 spectators
Warren believes Riyadh Season has made a fantastic contribution to British boxing
I don’t think many share his views on the money behind the fight damaging the structure of boxing or the fact that the Saudi national anthem was played at Wembley. This was a huge event, watched by millions and everyone who came up to me after the fight said how entertained they were.
Boxing, like everything, evolves and advances. If you have your blinders on all the time you won’t get anywhere because the fact is that the Riyadh season’s contribution to British boxing has been fantastic.
Ask Tyson Fury, Joshua or Dubois and most importantly, ask the fans.