Canelo Alvarez, a professional boxer hailing from Mexico, recently signed a 5-year, $365 million contract with DAZN (pronounced “Da Zone”). Multiple news outlets report that the contract is the largest contract in sports history. Additionally, the Alvarez-DAZN deal is the latest example of sports venturing into the world of online streaming platforms. DAZN is a relatively new streaming service that focuses on sports programming and seeks to fill a void resulting from Home Box Office’s (HBO’s) recent announcement that it will no longer feature boxing events. While high profile boxing events historically have been subject to the traditional pay-per-view model, it is expected that all DAZN subscribers will be able to watch Alvarez’s bouts via the streaming service. DAZN presently charges a $9.99 monthly subscription fee. According to reports, HBO held a contractual right of first negotiation and benefited from a contractual last-look provision for Alvarez’s December 15, 2018 fight at Madison Square Garden, but HBO ultimately declined to match DAZN’s bid.
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