Riyadh Season to ditch PPV model after August

Turki Alalshikh says Moses Itauma vs Dillian Whyte will be the last Riyadh Season show not available to standard DAZN subscribers

Turki Alalshikh claims that, following a meeting with DAZN CEO Shay Segev, “all Riyadh Season & The Ring events will be free to DAZN subscribers” starting in November.

Their August 16th show, headlined by Moses Itauma vs Dillian Whyte, will serve as their final PPV.

Never let it be said that I don’t give credit where it’s due. Like Showtime and HBO back in the day, subscription services seemed like the solution to PPV bloat, only for DAZN, ESPN+, and others to about-face on PPVs while simultaneously raising their monthly prices. Between their niche status and the ungodly amounts of money needed to keep up with them, combat sports fandom has a ludicrously high barrier of entry compared to the likes of football, soccer, baseball, and basketball.

It costs more to watch two major boxing events than every single MLB game in an entire year. Alalshikh’s plenty willing to burn money on unprofitable events, so kudos to him for doing so here.