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When Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua meet at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, they will be the latest British fighters to headline a big night at home. Anyone checking the latest Fury Joshua odds is looking at two of the biggest draws the country has produced, but the stage they share took the best part of a century to build. Here is how British boxing grew, and the venues that hosted its biggest title fights.
From private clubs to a governing body
In the early 20th century, British boxing was run largely from the National Sporting Club in Covent Garden. Members watched in evening dress, and the club introduced the Lonsdale Belt for British champions in 1909.
The British Boxing Board of Control was formed in 1929 and took charge of the professional sport. The same year, York Hall opened in Bethnal Green. It later became the home of small-hall boxing in London, and many future champions had early fights there.
Post-war crowds at the big grounds
After the Second World War, boxing could fill outdoor stadiums. Freddie Mills won the world light-heavyweight title against Gus Lesnevich at White City in 1948, and in 1951 Randolph Turpin beat Sugar Ray Robinson at Earls Court to become world middleweight champion.
Henry Cooper gave the sport two famous nights against Muhammad Ali. The first, at Wembley Stadium in 1963, was a non-title fight remembered for the left hook that dropped Ali, then still Cassius Clay. The second, at Arsenal's Highbury ground in 1966, was for the world heavyweight title, and Ali won when Cooper was badly cut in the sixth round.
Arenas and the television age
From the 1970s, indoor arenas staged more of the big fights. The Empire Pool at Wembley, now OVO Arena Wembley, hosted Alan Minter against Marvin Hagler in 1980, a world middleweight title fight that ended with Minter cut in the third round and bottles thrown into the ring.
Television changed the money involved. Frank Bruno challenged Tim Witherspoon for the WBA heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium in 1986, and by the 1990s satellite broadcasting and pay-per-view had made stars of Chris Eubank, Nigel Benn and Naseem Hamed. The second Eubank and Benn fight drew about 42,000 to Old Trafford in 1993.
Manchester had another big night in 2005, when Ricky Hatton beat Kostya Tszyu at what was then the MEN Arena. The fight started in the early hours to suit the American audience, and the crowd stayed for every round.
Wembley's modern era
The new Wembley Stadium has drawn the biggest crowds British boxing has seen. Carl Froch knocked out George Groves there in front of 80,000 in 2014. Joshua's win over Wladimir Klitschko in 2017 drew about 90,000, Fury's stoppage of Dillian Whyte in 2022 drew around 94,000, and Joshua's fight with Daniel Dubois in 2024 set a stadium boxing record of 96,000.
The growth has not been limited to heavyweights or to men. The Board of Control first licensed female boxers in 1998, and in 2022 Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall headlined at the O2 Arena in London with the undisputed middleweight title at stake.
Cardiff's place in the story
Few cities have a better boxing record. Lennox Lewis beat Frank Bruno at Cardiff Arms Park in 1993, the first world heavyweight title fight between two British boxers, and Hamed won his first world title at the same ground two years later.
The Millennium Stadium, built on that site and now the Principality Stadium, hosted Joe Calzaghe's win over Mikkel Kessler in front of more than 50,000 in 2007. Joshua defended his titles there against Carlos Takam and Joseph Parker, so he returns to a venue he knows well.
A stage built over a century
From members' clubs in evening dress to stadiums holding 90,000, the growth of British boxing can be traced through the rooms it has filled. Each generation has found a bigger venue, and promoters now plan the biggest fights around summer stadium dates. For anyone following the boxing betting odds, Fury against Joshua in Cardiff is the next chapter in that story.
Betting is for over-18s only.
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