Joshua-Fury fight contract requires UK venue, Hearn says

Eddie Hearn said Anthony Joshua’s contract requires his long-discussed fight with Tyson Fury to take place in the UK, setting up a venue fight as well as a boxing one. Any move to the United States would need Joshua’s team to sign off on new terms, while Fury’s side does not appear to face the same Britain-only restriction.

That mismatch matters because the heavyweight superfight is being built as a late-2026 event, with November discussed as a likely target. A UK stadium has been the frontrunner in recent discussions, but the United States and Saudi Arabia remain in play, keeping the location unresolved even as both camps push the broader deal forward.

The contract structure reaches beyond the ring ropes. Hearn has said the arrangement involves Saudi boxing financier Turki Alalshikh and the Saudi events company Sela, with Hearn and Frank Warren listed as the promoters of record. Dana White and Zuffa Boxing are contractually excluded from promotional involvement, leaving control of the event squarely with the boxing promoters tied to the deal.

The venue question is tied directly to money, television and prestige. A fight in Britain would give Joshua and Fury a chance to stage one of the biggest all-British bouts in recent memory on home soil, while a U.S. date would open larger American broadcast and casino-market possibilities. Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium and MGM Grand, along with SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, have been among the possible American venues discussed.

Joshua’s calendar already has a June-July stretch of preparation built in. He is scheduled to fight Kristian Prenga on July 25 in Saudi Arabia, while Fury is expected to take a separate warm-up bout in August before the Joshua meeting. Those interim fights are part of the runway to the larger heavyweight event, which has been discussed as a late-2026 showdown rather than an immediate booking.

For now, the contractual language gives Joshua leverage on geography. If the final decision moves away from Britain, his team will need to negotiate again before the fight can leave the UK. That puts the venue, not just the fighters, at the center of a bout that has been circling boxing’s biggest stages for years.