The Chief Executive Officer of Balmoral Group Promotions, Ezekiel Adamu, has revealed that the fourth edition of Chaos in the Ring, set to take place on May 1 at Balmoral Hall inside the Federal Palace Hotel in Victoria Island, Lagos, is designed to project Africa’s best boxing talents to a worldwide audience through its broadcast partnership with DAZN.
Speaking during a media briefing on Tuesday, Adamu—who was honoured in Italy last November with the Nelson Mandela Award for his impact on African sports development and youth empowerment—shared his long-term vision for the event and its role in sports business growth.
“What we are building is part of the cultural economy. We are creating systems and consistent platforms capable of connecting talent with visibility and monetisation on a global level,” he said.
“And partnering with Amir Khan and DAZN will give the talents that we undeniably have in Nigeria and Africa the exposure they need.”
One of the headline fights will see Ezra Arenyeka square off against Godday Appah for the WBO All-Africa cruiserweight belt. Adamu described the bout as a symbolic “Peace Fight,” intended to promote unity between the Ijaw and Itsekiri ethnic groups in the Niger Delta region.
“We don’t want to fight with guns or weapons anymore. We want to settle the score in the ring,” Adamu said, noting that the victorious boxer would be recognised as a Peace Ambassador for the Niger Delta.
He further emphasised that the partnership with DAZN and the growing international attention around the event demonstrate Lagos’ rising reputation as a major hub for boxing on the continent. According to him, collaborations with global fighters and promoters have already delivered tens of millions of online impressions for the franchise.
Adamu also drew attention to 19-year-old rising star Raheem Animashaun, who holds an unbeaten 19-fight record with 12 knockouts and is the youngest ever West African Boxing Union super-lightweight champion. The youngster is scheduled to face experienced Tanzanian fighter Emmanuel Amos, who brings a record of 22 wins, 10 defeats and one draw with 13 knockouts.
He explained that Animashaun’s recent signing with a prominent international boxing platform followed his impressive showing at an earlier edition of the event. “That is showing that the platform is actually growing and the global audience is seeing it,” he said.
Other fights lined up include Ghanaian boxer Elvis Ahorgah taking on Joe Laws of Newcastle in a super-middleweight contest, Britain’s Michael McKinson facing undefeated Algerian Mohammad Sahnoun, Nigeria’s national middleweight champion Rasheed Adeyemo battling Tanzania’s Nicolaus Mdoe, and a welterweight encounter between UK-based Ghanaian Samuel Antwi and experienced Congolese fighter Paul Kamanga.
The event will also include an exhibition match involving popular Nigerian entertainers Portable and Carter Efe, whose combined social media audience exceeds 10 million followers. President of the Nigeria Boxing Board of Control, Dr Rafiu Ladipo, assured that all participants, including the celebrity fighters, will undergo proper medical screening before competing.
Looking beyond the fights themselves, Adamu highlighted the wider economic value of staging such events, explaining that they stimulate several sectors at once, including hotels, transport services, security, logistics, media production and digital content distribution.
“Every event activates multiple layers of the economy. We are talking hospitality, logistics, media, security, transportation and digital distribution. Once you are able to deliver consistently and the fans enjoy it, this becomes a major, major platform,” he said.
The Balmoral boss added that through the Chaos in the Ring series, Lagos is steadily positioning itself as a leading boxing destination in Africa.
“Admittedly, Ghana have a big stage as well with their government’s focus, but when it comes to pull, Lagos is the city of boxing. With the Chaos in the Ring events as well, none can compete with those numbers.”
