Bruin Capital has acquired a minority stake in Matchroom Holdings, as investor appetite grows for live events, global sports rights and scalable media assets.
The agreement will see the US-based investment firm take a 15% stake in the parent company of one of the world’s largest independent sports promotion and media businesses, valuing the business at more than £1bn. The Hearn family will retain majority ownership and operational control.
Matchroom was founded by Barry Hearn in 1982 and has grown from a UK sports promotion business into a diversified international group operating across boxing, darts, snooker, pool and multi-sport events. Its portfolio includes Matchroom Boxing, Matchroom Boxing USA, the Professional Darts Corporation, World Snooker Tour, Matchroom Multi-Sport and Matchroom Media. The company distributes more than 600 event days and 2,400 hours of programming annually through global broadcast and streaming partnerships. The group also represents leading athletes including Anthony Joshua, Katie Taylor, Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis and Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez.
Bruin Capital, founded in 2015 by former IMG executive George Pyne, invests across sports, media, entertainment, marketing and technology. Its portfolio includes sports documentary producer Box to Box Films, stadium advertising business TGI Sport, FairPlay Sports Media and hospitality provider Proof of the Pudding.
The deal reflects wider investor interest in sports businesses that control live events, media rights and recognisable intellectual property. Private capital has increasingly moved beyond team ownership into companies that can produce year-round content, manage rights relationships and build direct fan engagement across multiple markets.
Barry Hearn will continue as President, while Eddie Hearn remains Group Chairman. The company said Bruin’s investment would support expansion across media rights, digital distribution, data and direct-to-consumer engagement.
George Pyne described Matchroom as one of the most important independent sports businesses in the world and said the company sits at the intersection of live events, global media rights and premium sports intellectual property.
Barry Hearn said Matchroom had spent more than 40 years remaining independent and focused on execution, while Eddie Hearn said the partnership would help accelerate the company’s global expansion plans.
For the international sports media sector, the transaction underlines the growing value of independent rights holders and event owners at a time when broadcasters, streaming platforms, sponsors and betting partners are competing for premium live content with global reach.
