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Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua: Date and Venue announced for long-awaited heavyweight clash
24th September, 2026 09:08 PM
Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury will contest their long-awaited all-British heavyweight fight at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on Friday,11 December,2026.
The bout, more than a decade in the making, will be broadcast globally on Netflix.
BBC Sport understands the main event could take place in the early hours of Saturday morning in the UK, with organisers considering a late start to cater for audiences in the United States.
Joshua and Fury will come face-to-face at a news conference in London on Wednesday, 30 September, as the build-up begins to one of the most anticipated fights in British boxing history.
“I am inspiring a generation,” Joshua, 36, posted on Instagram. Fury, 38, is yet to comment on the announcement.
The event is being promoted as a collaboration between Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh’s The Ring and UFC chief Dana White.
“Two of the best heavyweights of this generation, finally in the ring together,” Alalshikh said.
“This will be one of the biggest fights in boxing history. I am very happy to make this fight happen for the fans.”
The former two-time world champions had already signed contracts for the bout earlier this year, but the date and venue had yet to be confirmed.
London’s Wembley Stadium and New York’s Madison Square Garden were the frontrunners to stage the fight, but both presented issues before Cardiff recently emerged as an alternative.
The Principality Stadium has hosted late-night boxing before, including Joe Calzaghe’s fight with Mikkel Kessler in November 2007, which began at 01:00 GMT.
Welsh Rugby Union and Cardiff Council officials welcomed the fight, saying it would reinforce the city’s reputation for staging major events and could bring a significant economic boost, although some operational details still need to be finalised.
Joshua had been pushing for the fight to take place in the UK and has got his wish.
“Forever indebted to the UK public for their support of Anthony Joshua. We couldn’t have got this over the line without you,” his promoter Eddie Hearn said.
Could Fury-Joshua really take place in the early hours?
A major fight in Cardiff taking place in the early hours might seem unusual, but there is precedent for UK events being scheduled around American television audiences.
Ricky Hatton’s career-defining victory over Kostya Tszyu at Manchester’s MEN Arena in June 2005 began at about 02:00 local time, allowing US broadcaster Showtime to show the fight on Saturday evening.
Less than a year later, Welshman Calzaghe’s unification fight against Jeff Lacy at the same arena was staged at a similar hour. Calzaghe’s 2007 victory over Kessler in Cardiff was also influenced by the US television schedule.
Mixed martial arts has gone even later. Michael Bisping’s UFC title defence against Dan Henderson in Manchester in 2016 began deep into the night, with the fighters making their way to the octagon at about 04:45 local time.
When the UFC returned to Manchester in 2024, the UFC 304 main card began at 03:00 BST – corresponding with its traditional 22:00 start on the US East Coast, with Briton Leon Edwards fighting Belal Muhammad in the main event just after 05:30.
The precise timing of Fury-Joshua has yet to be announced, and promoter Eddie Hearn has played down suggestions it could begin as late as 03:00 GMT.
