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By GEORGE WILLIS
LAS VEGAS - Those who think boxing is dead haven't talked to Richard Schaefer. The CEO of Golden Boy Promotions not only thinks boxing is alive and well, but headed toward a resurgent future that includes a return to network television. "Everybody's telling me you can't get boxing back on network television," Schaefer said recently. "I'm telling you I will get boxing back on network television. Everybody else can try it, too. Be my guest. But I want to get back on network television and everybody is going to say, 'I can't believe what Richard is doing.' Sometime in the next 12 months it's going to be on network television, I really think so." Boxing has been relegated to cable and pay-per-view outlets since the early 1980s diminishing its exposure to the general sports audience. Mainstream coverage has dwindled, and mixed martial arts is perceived as the combat form of the future. But Schaefer is in the midst of a master plan to change all that. While the primary story of last night's fight between Floyd Mayweather and Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand was Mayweather's return from a two-year layoff, the more sustaining subplot was the union of corporate sponsors and digital media that partnered with the promotion to increase awareness. AT&T, The Gary Group, Tecate, National Cinema Media, Home Depot, Affliction Clothing, and Quarter State are some of major names that have put an estimated $20 million in marketing value behind the fight. A Tecate beer can, a video trailer at a restaurant, flyers at Home Depot, 30-second trailers at movie theaters, AT&T commercials, iTunes, Latino and urban Web sites, programming in hotel rooms, placement on various social networking outlets, and HBO 24/7 all have been mobilized to promote the bout. Early tracking indicated the fight would be a pay-per-view success. Anything close to 1 million buys would be worth bragging about. Schaefer has held two business-related forums during the promotion, one in New York 10 days ago and another this week in Las Vegas, to outline what he calls the "24/7/360 Consumer Surround Sound," aimed at not only increasing awareness, but also attracting a younger audience. "I'm convinced unless you have sponsor activation and embrace new media marketing strategies and utilize digital platforms it's going to be impossible to break the million mark as it relates to pay-perview buys," Schaefer said. "Over the past few years we've put a lot of effort into assembling sponsors that understand that message and are as excited as we are about the sport of boxing." One of the new strategies was showing the fight at movie theaters. Mayweather-Marquez was shown in about 230 theater locations around the country. It's the first time a major fight had been shown in such a manner in 20 years. In addition a trailer promoting the bout was shown at about 1,500 locations for three weeks leading up to the bout. Meanwhile, Tecate has thrown all of its sports marketing dollars in boxing, pulling out of soccer completely. "What these companies have done is allow the reach of the sport to not grow 10-fold, to not grow 100-fold, but to grow 1,000-fold," said Mark Taffet, the HBO pay-per-view boss. "This type of activation is going to fuel the growth of the sport." According to HBO PPV figures, 2006-2008 produced three of the four biggest years in payperview history with 12.5 million buys and $634 million in revenue generated during that time. The number only will get better with corporate backing. "Anyone who thinks boxing is something in their rear view mirror is acting out of naivety at best," Taffet added. "The sport is just not going into the future. It's leading the way into the future."
LAS VEGAS - Those who think boxing is dead haven't talked to Richard Schaefer. The CEO of Golden Boy Promotions not only thinks boxing is alive and well, but headed toward a resurgent future that includes a return to network television. "Everybody's telling me you can't get boxing back on network television," Schaefer said recently. "I'm telling you I will get boxing back on network television. Everybody else can try it, too. Be my guest. But I want to get back on network television and everybody is going to say, 'I can't believe what Richard is doing.' Sometime in the next 12 months it's going to be on network television, I really think so." Boxing has been relegated to cable and pay-per-view outlets since the early 1980s diminishing its exposure to the general sports audience. Mainstream coverage has dwindled, and mixed martial arts is perceived as the combat form of the future. But Schaefer is in the midst of a master plan to change all that. While the primary story of last night's fight between Floyd Mayweather and Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand was Mayweather's return from a two-year layoff, the more sustaining subplot was the union of corporate sponsors and digital media that partnered with the promotion to increase awareness. AT&T, The Gary Group, Tecate, National Cinema Media, Home Depot, Affliction Clothing, and Quarter State are some of major names that have put an estimated $20 million in marketing value behind the fight. A Tecate beer can, a video trailer at a restaurant, flyers at Home Depot, 30-second trailers at movie theaters, AT&T commercials, iTunes, Latino and urban Web sites, programming in hotel rooms, placement on various social networking outlets, and HBO 24/7 all have been mobilized to promote the bout. Early tracking indicated the fight would be a pay-per-view success. Anything close to 1 million buys would be worth bragging about. Schaefer has held two business-related forums during the promotion, one in New York 10 days ago and another this week in Las Vegas, to outline what he calls the "24/7/360 Consumer Surround Sound," aimed at not only increasing awareness, but also attracting a younger audience. "I'm convinced unless you have sponsor activation and embrace new media marketing strategies and utilize digital platforms it's going to be impossible to break the million mark as it relates to pay-perview buys," Schaefer said. "Over the past few years we've put a lot of effort into assembling sponsors that understand that message and are as excited as we are about the sport of boxing." One of the new strategies was showing the fight at movie theaters. Mayweather-Marquez was shown in about 230 theater locations around the country. It's the first time a major fight had been shown in such a manner in 20 years. In addition a trailer promoting the bout was shown at about 1,500 locations for three weeks leading up to the bout. Meanwhile, Tecate has thrown all of its sports marketing dollars in boxing, pulling out of soccer completely. "What these companies have done is allow the reach of the sport to not grow 10-fold, to not grow 100-fold, but to grow 1,000-fold," said Mark Taffet, the HBO pay-per-view boss. "This type of activation is going to fuel the growth of the sport." According to HBO PPV figures, 2006-2008 produced three of the four biggest years in payperview history with 12.5 million buys and $634 million in revenue generated during that time. The number only will get better with corporate backing. "Anyone who thinks boxing is something in their rear view mirror is acting out of naivety at best," Taffet added. "The sport is just not going into the future. It's leading the way into the future."
Richard Shaefer might be the guy who brings Boxing back to the mainstream.
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