The story
Founded by Barry Hearn and Eddie Hearn on Apr 23, 1982.1
Matchroom formed in 1982 concentrating on snooker management with the likes of Steve Davis, Dennis Taylor, and Jimmy White under contract. It sponsored two non-ranking tournaments, the Matchroom Professional Championship (1986–1988, restricted to its contracted players) and Matchroom League (1987–1994). A novelty song called "Snooker Loopy" by "Chas & Dave and The Matchroom Mob" reached number 6 in the UK Singles Chart in 1986, with five Matchroom players featured on backup vocals and in the video.
Hearn's first foray into boxing promotion was the Frank Bruno vs. Joe Bugner heavyweight clash in 1987 in front of 35,000 people at White Hart Lane.
The range of sports increased in 1994 with the Mosconi Cup, an event which sees teams from Europe and the United States compete in a 9-ball pool tournament. It has become a major event on the professional pool calendar.
Over the years, Matchroom's portfolio under Hearn grew, taking a majority stake in the Professional Darts Corporation in 2001, helping oversee a growth in the sport. Matchroom Sport also promote the World Cup of Pool, a national team scotch doubles event, and the World Pool Masters, an annual nine-ball event.
In 2002, the company formed PGA EuroPro Tour, the UK's leading developmental golf tour, in association with the PGA. Later, in the 2000s, came ten pin bowling's Weber Cup. In 2009, Barry Hearn became the majority shareholder in World Snooker Tour Ltd. Since then the sport has grown, with prize money increased and new events introduced worldwide.
More recently, Matchroom has launched the World Championship of Ping Pong, Superstars of Gymnastics, British Basketball All-Stars, and British Fast5 Netball All-Stars Championship.
In May 2018, Matchroom Boxing agreed five-year deal with DAZN reportedly worth £740 million to promote 16 fights in the US on the channel. In June 2021, both firms extended its agreement.
In April 2021, Barry Hearn stepped down as chairman with his son Eddie taking over the role. Barry will continue as president in an advisory role, while Eddie takes over as head of the PGA EuroPro tour, alongside overseeing Matchroom's wider operations and continuing to head the boxing division.
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In February 2026, Matchroom Boxing signed a new five-year deal with DAZN in the United States and the United Kingdom, extending their partnership through 2031, and also partnered with Foxtel in Australia to stream its events on Kayo Sports. As part of the deal. DAZN will broadcast 30 Matchroom events a year.
In May 2026, Matchroom announced the sale of minority equity stake of 15% to Bruin Capital, an American private equity firm, in a transaction that valued the company at more than £1 billion. As part of the deal, the Hearn family will retain control of the company with Bruin joining the board to advise on the company's growth in North America.
From Wikipedia’s article on Matchroom Sport, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4