What is boxing day?

In 1967, then-champion Ali was stripped of his title and suspended from boxing for 3½ years for his refusal to comply with the draft and enter the U.S. Army. In 1970, he first regained a boxing license and promptly fought comeback fights against Jerry Quarry and Oscar Bonavena in an attempt to regain the heavyweight championship from the then undefeated Joe Frazier. In a bout dubbed the Fight of the Century, Frazier scored a unanimous decision, leaving Ali fighting other contenders for years in an attempt at a new title shot.

Meanwhile, the heavily-muscled Foreman had quickly risen from a gold medal victory at the 1968 Olympics to the top ranks of professional heavyweights. Greatly feared for his punching power, size, and sheer physical dominance, Foreman was nonetheless underestimated by Frazier and his promoters, and knocked the champion down six times in two rounds before the bout was stopped. He further solidified his hold over the heavyweight division by demolishing the only man besides Frazier at the time to defeat Ali, Ken Norton, in two rounds. At 25, the younger and stronger Foreman seemed an overwhelming favorite against the well worn 32-year-old Ali.

Foreman and Ali spent much of the summer of 1974 training in Zaïre, getting acclimatised to its tropical African climate. The fight was originally set to happen in September 25, but Foreman was cut near his right eye during training (by sparring partner Bill McMurray) and the date pushed back to October 30.

A three-night-long music festival to hype the fight, Zaire 74, took place as scheduled, September 22–24, including performances by James Brown, Celia Cruz and the Fania All-Stars, B.B. King, Miriam Makeba, The Spinners, Bill Withers, The Crusaders, and Manu Dibango, as documented in the 2008 film Soul Power.

The championship was scheduled for 4 am local time in order to appear on live closed-circuit television in the Eastern Time Zone of the U.S. at 10 pm.

/r/soccer Thread