Joshua vs Usyk 2: Why are they fighting in Saudi Arabia and how big is the stadium in Jeddah?

Oleksandr Usyk took off with world heavyweight boxing championship belts after he soundly defeated Anthony Joshua in their first matchup on British soil at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last year.

Their rematch, called Rage on the Red Sea, is set for Saturday, and this time it’s taking place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, at the King Abdullah Sports City indoor arena.

As the first fight gave Joshua hometown advantage, their second bout could have been held this time in Usyk’s home capital of Kyiv in Ukraine. This is of course impossible at the moment given the ongoing war waged by Russia against the country.

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Joshua vs. Usyk 2 venue

As Ukraine was out of the question, hosting one of the biggest boxing events of the year inevitably went to the highest bidder- in this case, Saudi Arabia. The country reportedly forked out between $80-150 million dollars to be offered as the fight purse, a tantalizing amount that would attract any event organizer, or almost any athlete for that matter.

The fight will be held in a very modern venue worthy of such a much-awaited event- the King Abdullah Sports Hall is an indoor arena that seats 10,000, which can be reconfigured to accommodate different sports. There is a stand with 21,000 seats that is attached to the indoor arena and becomes its extension.

Saudi Arabia and sportswashing

Huge payouts and fancy arenas notwithstanding, the decision to hold the fight in Saudi Arabia has caused criticism, similar to the outrage brought about by the formation of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Tour. The country’s hosting the event is thought to be part of the practice of sports washing, where sports are used to improve the reputation of a country- in this case, one that has been slammed for its human rights violations, and which also has a lot of money to offer as incentives to athletes.