Spurs set to host Joshua fight

Anthony Joshua’s next fight is set to be staged at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium in September.

His WBO defence against mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk is yet to be finalised, but it is expected that the deal will be done after Joshua’s undisputed world title fight against Tyson Fury fell through.

If the bout was to go ahead it is hoped that the 62,000 seated venue will be at full capacity, with crowds starting to return to football grounds and other sporting venues across the country and the Government looking to lift all restrictions on 21 June. However, increasingly concerns around the Delta variant may push this date back.

Joshua, who also holds the WBA and IBF belts, was due to face Kubrat Pulev at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last summer, but the fight was postponed until December and switched to Wembley Arena due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

31-year-old Joshua has 24 wins from 25 fights (22 of them by knockout) with one loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. on his record. The Ukrainian Usyk has 18 wins from 18 fights and is was the first cruiserweight in history to hold all four major world championships before moving up to the heavyweight divsion.

Two NFL games are also set to be held in October. A return of live events to the stadium will bring welcome revenue into the club after various postponements in 2020 and 2021, including Guns ‘N’ Roses who have been delayed twice and now will not appear until next year.

Amazon among frontrunners for stadium naming rights as Levy eyes record £250m deal

Amazon have emerged as one of the frontrunners for the naming rights of Spurs’ new stadium, according to the Daily Mail.

The firm are understood to have lodged their interest, with Daniel Levy aiming to secure a £25m a season deal that will run for ten years. If successful, he will secure the most lucrative stadium naming rights in history.

Spurs already have ties with Amazon, having spent the season filming the behind-the-scenes documentary, ‘All or Nothing’, but there is understood to be a number of other interested parties, with Spurs’ kit sponsors Nike among them.

The appeal for potential sponsors is obvious – not only is Tottenham now established as a major Premier League club, their new state-of-the-art stadium is also set to host NFL games, as well as numerous high-profile sporting events and concerts.

Levy will want to finalise a deal quickly in order to help meet the loan repayments on the £1billion stadium, especially with the anticipated loss of Champions League income next season.

The news comes after Tottenham became the first Premier League club to host a coronavirus testing operation at their stadium, with the basement car park being used as a site for drive-through tests for North Middlesex University Hospital staff and their families.

‘The Rebuild’ with Alasdair Gold

It was an absolute pleasure to join host Ricky Sacks and Football London correspondent, Alasdair Gold, to talk all things Tottenham Hotspur!

We reflected on Spurs returning back to winning ways against Red Star Belgrade while looking back on the club’s start to the season to try and determine where things have gone wrong.

We also discussed Mauricio Pochettino’s current re-build along what his plans could be for January, both in terms of incomings and outgoings.

We also took a look at the NFL game which recently took place at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, along with the possible stadium naming rights that may come in the future.

We finish by talking about how our youth team shone against Red Star Belgrade in a 9-2 thumping from Ryan Mason’s men which saw Troy Parrott grab four goals.

You can have another listen here: www.audioboom.com/posts/7406522-the-rebuild-with-alasdair-gold