Boxer Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez Sues Streamer DAZN For Breach Of $365M Contract

Tom Grater
·2 min read

Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, the Mexican boxing superstar, is suing streaming service DAZN as well as promoter Oscar de la Hoya over various complaints related to the mega-rich $365M multi-fight contract he signed back in 2018.

The deal, which at the time was touted as the richest in sport’s history, was originally set to cover 11 fights. Three of those have taken place but no agreement has yet been reached on a fourth. His last fight was in November last year, a knockout victory over Sergey Kovalev. The pandemic has disrupted the boxing schedule but some fights have since been staged.

According to The Guardian, a civil suit was filed on Tuesday in U.S. district court or the central district of California claiming that Dazn and De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions had breached their contracts. The 24-page document seeks to recover significant damages and claims intentional interference with contract and negligent interference with contract, as well as fraud.

The boxer claims Dazn and Golden Boy failed to propose adequate plans for his 2020 fights, stating that he was willing to accept payment below the guaranteed amount in light of the pandemic disruption.

As he is still under contract, Alvarez is unlikely to fight again this year, according to the report.

In response, Golden Boy has said “Canelo’s beef is with Dazn,” while Dazn has not yet issued a response.

Dazn is an over-the-top subscription sports streaming service founded out of the UK. It is also available in the U.S. and Canada. Its parent company is Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries.

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