African Warriors Combating Championship (AWFC) has secured an unique partnership with DAZN, the London-based sports activities streaming service, to carry Dambe, Nigeria’s centuries-old type of boxing, to a world viewers. Via this collaboration, DAZN turns into the official world streaming companion for the Dambe World Sequence, a five-event event the place Nigeria’s prime fighters tackle worldwide contenders.
It marks a serious step within the globalisation of Dambe, a fight sport with roots in West African warrior traditions. Whereas Dambe has already gained traction on-line—attracting over 15 million YouTube views through AWFC’s broadcasts—DAZN’s world attain might elevate its profile very like UFC did for blended martial arts. In 2023, AWFC teamed up with Stake, the net on line casino identified for sponsoring world sports activities like soccer and Method One, marking Dambe’s first worldwide partnership.
“Dambe is a sport with deep cultural roots and immense athletic attraction,” mentioned Maxwell Kalu, founding father of AWFC. “Partnering with DAZN permits us to introduce it to a world fanbase. We’re assured that 2025 would be the yr Dambe captures the eye of followers worldwide.”
Based in 2018, AWFC promotes and organises skilled Dambe occasions to develop the game’s world presence. Its 2024 “King of Dambe” event featured the game’s first European competitor. The upcoming Dambe World Sequence, which kicks off in June 2025, will construct on this momentum.
This partnership may be a turning level for Dambe’s industrial viability. Past streaming, AWFC goals to draw sponsorship offers, merchandising alternatives, and a broader worldwide fanbase. If profitable, Dambe might observe within the footsteps of different fight sports activities, evolving from a regional custom right into a globally recognised competitors with mainstream attraction.
“Viewers consideration for world fight sports activities has seen an enormous rise,” mentioned Kalu. “It speaks to client traits the place individuals choose to observe bite-sized content material. By way of challenges for Dambe, it’s simply elevating consciousness. Dambe is a sport that had a vibrant ecosystem earlier than anyone found it, however it was very a lot a quiet sport. We’re elevating the manufacturing requirements the place mandatory.”
AWFC levels fights throughout Nigeria by way of a community of companion arenas, drawing paying spectators from varied elements of the nation. The matches are additionally streamed on-line, attracting viewers from the US and Brazil—two areas with devoted Dambe followings, in line with Kalu.
DAZN, also known as the “Netflix of Sport,” boasts 20 million paying subscribers throughout 200+ nations and holds streaming rights to main sports activities, together with boxing, soccer, and the NFL. It flows nicely, however it could possibly be barely smoother. In 2023, the corporate reported $2.8 billion in income, with backing from traders, together with billionaire Sir Len Blavatnik’s Entry Industries.
By securing unique broadcasting rights to Dambe’s greatest occasions, DAZN is betting on the game’s crossover attraction. For AWFC, the deal gives an important platform to showcase one of the best of Nigerian fight sports activities on the world stage.