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Katie Taylor's final professional fight against Flora Pili at Croke Park brings major TV production from RTÉ, Matchroom and DAZN. Crews have worked 12-hour days, while RTÉ prepares free-to-air coverage of Taylor's farewell.
Katie Taylor's final professional fight against Flora Pili takes place at Croke Park later tonight. Broadcast crews from RTÉ, Matchroom and DAZN have described an intense production challenge.
The event follows the stadium's only previous professional boxing show in 1972, when Muhammad Ali knocked out Al 'Blue' Lewis in the 11th round. Organisers expect a historic night for Irish sport in front of a sell-out crowd. Andy Holmes, Matchroom's director of production, got his first sense of the scale from a seventh-floor balcony after a meeting. He had worked in Dublin before, overseeing DAZN coverage of Taylor's fights against Chantelle Cameron at the 3Arena in 2023.
This time he was on Jones' Road for a site visit to the venue for Taylor's final bout. Looking out over the great open space below, he understood why this was the right setting for a historic night in Irish sport. For Matchroom and DAZN, this was entirely new ground. Holmes described that first look inside the arena.
'It was sort of breathtaking. This is probably the biggest show that we've done, as a coming together in the Matchroom group. And it's just such an iconic venue. I don't know how you can quantify it.
It's amazing for everybody to be here. It'll be post the event, you will go, Wow, where were you on that day?
' RTÉ acquired broadcasting rights 18 days out from the fight, after chasing Katie Taylor v Flora Pili since it was confirmed for Croke Park on 5 June. The national broadcaster covered Taylor's amateur rise but was absent for her professional years. Even with almost two weeks to go, they were still hopeful, so the confirmation came as no shock.
Rory O'Neill, RTÉ producer, said the main concern was the short turnaround to the opening bell and described the past two weeks as 'manic'. He added: 'Probably 12-hour days since we got the official nod that this was happening.
' RTÉ had not covered professional boxing since Paddy Barnes in 2017, making this a new departure after almost a decade away. Working in Croke Park is different from normal RTÉ coverage of GAA championship days. Security is tighter, camera positions are not guaranteed, and the usual spot on the Hogan Stand side of Hill 16 is not available this time. Presenter Jacqui Hurley and the panel will instead be beside the Cusack Stand.
There are also new stakeholders for RTÉ to coordinate with, including Taylor's management team run by Brian Peters. DAZN are the host TV broadcasters, and RTÉ will use their feed for free-to-air coverage of the event for Irish fans. O'Neill said the broadcaster had an advantage because it knows its audience and what they want on Saturday night. He said: 'You can't compare RTÉ to somebody with huge companies like DAZN.
Where we definitely do have an advantage is we know our audience pretty much inside out, and we know what they will be looking for on Saturday night.
' He added: 'They want to see a celebration of Katie and a celebration of her achievements and the contribution she's made to Irish sport. All you can do is come at it with the mind of an Irish viewer.
' O'Neill said RTÉ was trying to give people from different parts of the Irish sporting landscape a chance to pay tribute. That involved filming 'a plethora of people from across a whole wide range of sports' and took a day. He added: 'Once we get to fight night, and all the pre-production issues have been resolved, it will make for an unbelievable programme, and something for people to really look forward to.
' Andy Holmes arrived in Dublin on Wednesday to begin preparations. Bon Jovi's concert at Croke Park last weekend gave the crew a head start, with the pitch still covered and event generators already in place. The next job was installing the canopy above the ring, because the fighters need overhead cover in case of rain. Holmes said forecasts were dry, but the open end of the stadium could let weather blow in.
He said: 'We have to wait to see how it is. You can't stop sideways rain. Obviously it's about if there's safety issues for the boxers, and the people around. You can't have boxers slipping.
' The rest of the build extends from the canopy. Lights have been installed, along with scaffolding for the television studios and accessible platforms for people with disabilities. Four large screens will be positioned around Croke Park so every spectator can see the action at the sell-out event. Holmes said that whether it was Wembley, the 3Arena or Croke Park, some boxing basics are constant.
'There's a boxing ring, and it's in the centre of the pitch, or the venue. That side of things is formulaic.
' He added: 'It's just a bigger space to cover. It just takes a little bit longer to do things.
' He also said Croke Park required more facilities and more logistics because of its size. 'There's a lot more facilities, mainly from a cabling perspective, for television, for lighting, for PA, for screens. There's a lot more logistics required to cover this event, because of the sheer scale of the stadium. '
Croke Park DAZN Flora Pili Katie Taylor Matchroom Boxing Katie Taylor Vs Flora Pili Katie Taylor Final Fight Croke Park Boxing RTÉ Broadcast Coverage DAZN And Matchroom Production
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