Altice extends sports offering with exclusive boxing deal

Cable and telecom group Altice has acquired the exclusive TV rights for the next four years to World Series of Boxing (WSB), enabling its SFR Sport channel to distribute coverage of WSB matches exclusively from this year.

SFR Sport will air coverage of 36 qualifying stage matches and 14 final round bouts, including between six and 12 matches featuring the French team.

Altice secured the rights through a deal with Asloum Event and IMG/WSB, enabling it to provide exclusive coverage of the event in France, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Francophone Belgium.

This year will see the return of a French team, Les Fighting Roosters, to the competition, led by Olympic and World champion boxer  and vice-president of the Fédération Française de Boxe Brahim Asloum.

The Fighting Roosters is one of 12 franchises selected for the WSB by its organizing body the AIBA. The competition brings togher the best amateur or professional bxers from each participating country, with matches organized in five categories and bouts consisting of five rounds of three minutes each.

France will compete in the Europe/Africa qualifying group alongside the UK, Italy and Morocco.

“With this exclusive partnership, French boxing is growing in importance on all our channels and in particular on SFR Sport 5, which is entirely dedicated to combat sports. We are delighted to accompany the return to the world’s top tier of the French team, built by Brahim Asloum and enabling all fans to extend the great story of our Rio medals and of the full blossoming of French Olympic boxing,” said François Pesenti, CEO of SFR Sport.