The Jake Paul-Mike Tyson bout that brought massive viewership numbers to Netflix last week also resulted in a record-setting gate.
Paul’s unanimous-decision victory over Tyson at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Friday has netted a gate of $18,117,072, a number that Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions says shatters the U.S. record for a boxing or MMA event held outside of Las Vegas.
More than 72,300 fans were in attendance, MVP said, with an average ticket price of $304.
Netflix reported Saturday that 60 million households watched the bout, which was preceded by a co-main event in which Katie Taylor won a unanimous decision over Amanda Serrano to remain the undisputed world junior welterweight women’s champion.
“From setting the highest gate outside of Las Vegas in U.S. history for a combat sports event to becoming the most streamed sporting event in U.S. history, this event is a testament to the global impact of Jake Paul, Mike Tyson, Katie Taylor, Amanda Serrano, and the incredible athletes on this card,” MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian said in a statement. “We’re proud to have partnered with Netflix to deliver an event that brought fans together worldwide and broke many records.”
Overall, the Tyson-Paul gate is the ninth-highest for a U.S. boxing match. The record was set in 2015, when Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquaio raked in more than $72 million at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
The event was Netflix’s first foray into streaming a live sporting event, and many viewers complained on social media about losing the feed and buffering. Netflix is slated to stream two NFL games on Christmas Day — the Kansas City Chiefs at the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens at the Houston Texans, with the latter game featuring a live halftime performance by Beyoncé.
“While it wasn’t a perfect experience for all of our members, we are 100% committed to doing even better for our next LIVE events, NFL’s two Christmas Day games,” Netfilx chief marketing officer Marian Lee wrote of the Tyson-Paul fight on LinkedIn.