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Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua will be hoping to regain his titles as he takes on Andy Ruiz Jr in the biggest heavyweight rematch in nearly two decades.
The two boxers face off in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, six months after Ruiz stunned Joshua with a seventh round defeat in New York, despite the Mexican American being a 15-1 underdog with some bookies. The significance of the contest is enormous for both fighters, and whether it is a repeat or revenge, the number of viewers are anticipated to be suitably huge.
The fight will be broadcast on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK at a cost of £24.95, and through DAZN in the US for $19.99. However fans unable or unwilling to pay for the spectacle are expected to seek out free alternatives.
Illegal live streams have become increasingly easy to find in recent years, with hundreds of links shared online across social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and dedicated Reddit forums in the build up to major sporting events.
Websites hosting pirated content also rank highly in online searches for big fights, with some piracy experts claiming it has never been easier to find illegal streams online.
The proliferation of devices like Kodi boxes and IPTV sticks have added to the issue, but it is the arrival of smartphone and tablet apps that let users watch free live streams of boxing bouts like this weekend’s showdown between Joshua and Ruiz.
1/14 Who is the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world?
The ranking of The Independent’s 10 best male boxers on the planet. Take a look through to see who comes out on top.
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2/14 On the rise: Deontay Wilder
Nobody can deny he has a claim as the most powerful puncher pound-for-pound, but despite wiping out Luis Ortiz, the Bronze Bomber needs to beat Tyson Fury clearly to justify a place inside the top 10 here
EPA
3/14 On the rise: Josh Taylor (16-0)
Josh Taylor’s win over Regis Prograis to win the WBSS at 140 pounds was a massive statement – he’ll need to become the undisputed light welterweight champion by beating Jose Ramirez to make his place inside the top 10 indisputable
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4/14 On the rise: Miguel Berchelt (37-1)
Miguel Berchelt smashed Jose Sosa to pieces inside four rounds to defend his WBC super featherweight title – now 37-1 and undefeated since 2014 with 16 consecutive wins and six straight defences
AFP via Getty Images
5/14 10. Juan Francisco Estrada (39-3-0)
The two-weight world champion grabbed the lineal super flyweight title against Sor Rungvisai to snatch his pound-for-pound status and the WBC gold.
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6/14 9. Mikey Garcia (39-1-0)
Despite coming up short against Errol Spence in their welterweight bout, Garcia is still a modern great as a four-weight world champion.
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7/14 8. Gennady Golovkin (39-1-1)
Despite suffering the first loss of his career against Canelo Alvarez, Golovkin’s stellar career keeps him in our rankings. The boxing legend is now a two-time world champion.
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8/14 7. Manny Pacquiao (62-7-2)
The Filipino looked sensational to outpoint Keith Thurman, flooring the American and rolling back the years at 40 years old to confirm himself as the No 3 welterweight in the world at worst. Considering the illustrious names on his resume, a place inside the top 10 pound-for-pound list and a world class win this year confirms his place here.
AP
9/14 6. Errol Spence (26-0-0)
Spence beat Shawn Porter to unify the welterweight division as he goes in search of more belts. Danny Garcia looks set to be next.
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10/14 5. Oleksandr Usyk (17-0-0)
The undisputed, undefeated, unified cruiserweight world champion has successfully moved up in weight, beating Chazz Witherspoon on his heavyweight debut.
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11/14 4. Naoya Inoue (19-0-0)
The man nicknamed the ‘monster’ beat Nonito Donaire to win the World Boxing Super Series and move to 19-0 after a hard fought battle.
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12/14 3. Terence Crawford (35-0-0)
Another three-weight world champion, Crawford enters our top three and reaffirmed his place as one of the sport’s greats after a knockout win against Amir Khan.
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13/14 2. Canelo Alvarez (53-1-2)
One loss and a whole heap of controversy but Canelo’s record is one to be celebrated, a now four-weight world champion and still not even 30 years of age. The biggest star in the sport and an impressive KO win of Sergey Kovalev cements his standing, arguably has a claim to the throne, but he just misses out here.
USA TODAY Sports
14/14 1. Vasyl Lomachenko (14-1-0)
There can only be one. The king of the amateur game has stepped up to become the king of the professionals. Just 15 fights into his career and despite one career defeat, the current unified lightweight world champion sets records for days.
Loma won a world title in his third fight, became a two-weight champion in his seventh, and a three-weight champion in his twelfth fight. The king.
Less magic against a brave Luke Campbell, but more brutality, slashing body shots and exquisite balance and movement. Who’s next? Commey, Lopez, Davis?
Getty Images
1/14 Who is the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world?
The ranking of The Independent’s 10 best male boxers on the planet. Take a look through to see who comes out on top.
Getty Images
2/14 On the rise: Deontay Wilder
Nobody can deny he has a claim as the most powerful puncher pound-for-pound, but despite wiping out Luis Ortiz, the Bronze Bomber needs to beat Tyson Fury clearly to justify a place inside the top 10 here
EPA
3/14 On the rise: Josh Taylor (16-0)
Josh Taylor’s win over Regis Prograis to win the WBSS at 140 pounds was a massive statement – he’ll need to become the undisputed light welterweight champion by beating Jose Ramirez to make his place inside the top 10 indisputable
Getty Images
4/14 On the rise: Miguel Berchelt (37-1)
Miguel Berchelt smashed Jose Sosa to pieces inside four rounds to defend his WBC super featherweight title – now 37-1 and undefeated since 2014 with 16 consecutive wins and six straight defences
AFP via Getty Images
5/14 10. Juan Francisco Estrada (39-3-0)
The two-weight world champion grabbed the lineal super flyweight title against Sor Rungvisai to snatch his pound-for-pound status and the WBC gold.
Getty Images
6/14 9. Mikey Garcia (39-1-0)
Despite coming up short against Errol Spence in their welterweight bout, Garcia is still a modern great as a four-weight world champion.
Getty Images
7/14 8. Gennady Golovkin (39-1-1)
Despite suffering the first loss of his career against Canelo Alvarez, Golovkin’s stellar career keeps him in our rankings. The boxing legend is now a two-time world champion.
Getty Images
8/14 7. Manny Pacquiao (62-7-2)
The Filipino looked sensational to outpoint Keith Thurman, flooring the American and rolling back the years at 40 years old to confirm himself as the No 3 welterweight in the world at worst. Considering the illustrious names on his resume, a place inside the top 10 pound-for-pound list and a world class win this year confirms his place here.
AP
9/14 6. Errol Spence (26-0-0)
Spence beat Shawn Porter to unify the welterweight division as he goes in search of more belts. Danny Garcia looks set to be next.
Getty Images
10/14 5. Oleksandr Usyk (17-0-0)
The undisputed, undefeated, unified cruiserweight world champion has successfully moved up in weight, beating Chazz Witherspoon on his heavyweight debut.
Getty Images
11/14 4. Naoya Inoue (19-0-0)
The man nicknamed the ‘monster’ beat Nonito Donaire to win the World Boxing Super Series and move to 19-0 after a hard fought battle.
Getty Images
12/14 3. Terence Crawford (35-0-0)
Another three-weight world champion, Crawford enters our top three and reaffirmed his place as one of the sport’s greats after a knockout win against Amir Khan.
Getty Images
13/14 2. Canelo Alvarez (53-1-2)
One loss and a whole heap of controversy but Canelo’s record is one to be celebrated, a now four-weight world champion and still not even 30 years of age. The biggest star in the sport and an impressive KO win of Sergey Kovalev cements his standing, arguably has a claim to the throne, but he just misses out here.
USA TODAY Sports
14/14 1. Vasyl Lomachenko (14-1-0)
There can only be one. The king of the amateur game has stepped up to become the king of the professionals. Just 15 fights into his career and despite one career defeat, the current unified lightweight world champion sets records for days.
Loma won a world title in his third fight, became a two-weight champion in his seventh, and a three-weight champion in his twelfth fight. The king.
Less magic against a brave Luke Campbell, but more brutality, slashing body shots and exquisite balance and movement. Who’s next? Commey, Lopez, Davis?
Getty Images
Wayne Lonstein, CEO of anti-priacy firm VFT Solutions, has tracked this trend as part of his firm’s research into nano-piracy, whereby pirated streams spread at a near-uncontrollable rate across the internet.
“One trip to the App Store will show you over 100 apps capable of taking a stream be it legal or illegal and re-broadcasting it instantly globally,” Mr Lonstein told The Independent.
“Streamers range from seeking social popularity to actually monetizing piracy. Viewers find it simple – no need to register or be tech savvy to use and feel invisible.”
One of the ways rights holders can combat the scourge, according to Mr Lonstein, is to make the price of watching live events less prohibitive.
“Wise companies are using models where pricing makes it not worth the risk,” he said.
Earlier this year, BT Sports made the bold decision to broadcast both the Champion’s League and Europa League finals for free on YouTube, in a move that was described as a “major blow” for online pirates.
Anthony Joshua has racked up nearly 10 million pay-per-view buys throughout his career so far, but illegal viewers are estimated to considerably outstrip this.
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