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- Hearn family to retain majority control of Matchroom
- Company owns dedicated boxing promotion, PDC and World Snooker
- Bruin holds stakes in TGI Sport, Box To Box Films and AS1 soccer agency
Bruin Capital has acquired a 15 per cent stake in Matchroom that values the sports promoter at more than UK£1 billion (US$1.36 billion), according to The Financial Times (FT).
Matchroom’s portfolio spans multiple sports, including a dedicated boxing division and ownership of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and World Snooker.
Founded in 1982, it now promotes more than 600 event days and 2,400 hours of programming annually through broadcast and streaming partnerships worldwide. The company also represents several athletes, including British boxer Anthony Joshua and Irish boxer Katie Taylor.
The Hearn family will retain majority ownership, with founder Barry Hearn remaining as president and his son Eddie Hearn acting as the company’s chairman.
Bruin will join Matchroom’s board of directors as part of the transaction, with the investment firm to help support the company’s growth strategy, particularly in the US market.
“We have built this business over more than forty years by staying independent and focused on execution,” said Barry Hearn. “In Bruin, we found a partner that understands how to grow sports businesses at scale and can help us take the next step without changing how we operate.”
Matchroom has sought investment for some time, reportedly ending talks with CVC Capital Partners in 2023 over the sale of a minority stake. A year later, marketing agency Pitch International made an investment in the business.
The company declared turnover of UK£225.5 million (US$306.7 million) for the financial year ending 30th June 2025, with post-tax profits growing to UK£44 million (US$59.8 million).
The growth darts globally has been a particular source of growth thanks to Luke Littler’s emergence as a double world champion. Bruin’s investment will enable Matchroom to further market the sport in the US, where it benefits from extensive coverage on NBCUniversal’s streaming platform Peacock.
The push into the US also comes after the cancellation of its lucrative Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters tournament due to the nation’s decreasing interest in sporting investments.
China is also a target given the popularity of snooker and the impact of Wu Yize’s world championship victory earlier this month.
“The opportunity for Matchroom in the United States and globally continues to grow,” added Eddie Hearn. “This partnership with Bruin gives us the ability to accelerate that expansion and build on the platform we have created.”
Matchroom becomes the latest addition to Bruin’s investment portfolio, which currently includes the likes of TGI Sport, sports docuseries producer Box To Box Films and soccer representation agency As1.
Bruin previously invested in hospitality specialist On Location before selling its shareholding to Endeavor in 2020 at a US$660 million valuation. More recently, it sold its majority stake in Two Circles to Charterhouse Capital Partners (CCP) in a deal that reportedly valued the agency at UK£250 million (US$340 million).
Formed in 2015 by George Pyne, Bruin’s capital partners consist of a combination of private equity and family investors that have committed over US$1 billion to the fund. It believes in investing in businesses that provide services for the global sports industry, which can scale more predictably and generate stronger cashflows, rather than owning stakes in teams.
Bruin focuses on choosing businesses that are cash flow positive, with the goal of lending its expertise and global resources to help companies expand into new markets and become global leaders for their sector.
In January, Bruin raised another US$1 billion for a new investment vehicle to target sports-focused businesses, with the capital raise led by 26North, the investment platform of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment’s (HBSE) Josh Harris, and private equity firm TJC.
The raise reflects Bruin’s continued confidence in sports, with Pyne telling the SportsPro Investment Summit last year that the industry remained “a really good and safe bet” in the long term.
“Barry, Eddie, and the Matchroom team have built one of the most important independent sports businesses in the world,” said Bruin chief executive Pyne.
“Matchroom sits at the intersection of live events, global media rights, and premium sports intellectual property, and we see significant opportunities ahead, particularly in the United States.”
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