Former world champion Amir Khan will make history when he fights in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Friday 12th July, 2019.

Khan will become the first high profile Muslim boxer to showcase his skills at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah – nicknamed the “The Shining Jewel” in a fight that promises to elevate the Kingdom as a major sporting attraction.

Two-time world champion & Olympic Silver Medallist “King” Khan from Bolton, England, of Pakistani heritage, will face India’s national boxing hero Neeraj Goyat, the WBC Asian Champion, in a showdown with a championship title on the line.

The fight is an important event taking place during Saudi Seasons that will run from 8 June-19 July that aims to transform the Kingdom into one of the most important tourist destinations in the world.

As a devout practitioner of the Muslim faith, Khan’s presence in Saudi Arabia, home of the Two Holy Mosques in Makkah and Medina, promises to transcend cultural boundaries, capture the imaginations of the millions of citizens living in the MENA region and reach a truly global audience.

Khan burst onto the world stage at just 17 when he battled his way to a Silver medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Greece.

In a 38-fight professional career, Khan has become a two-time world champion and has faced some of the finest boxers and pound-for-pound best of his generation, including Marcos Maidana, Zab Judah, Danny Garcia, Saul Alvarez and in his last fight Terence Crawford.

Khan’s rival Goyat is a phenomenon in his home country.  Hailing from Chandigarh, Goyat is a pioneer in helping to establish professional boxing in India.  He left behind a highly successful amateur career to pursue his dream of becoming a professional boxer and show the world that India can be a new super-power in world boxing.  To that end he has fought in numerous countries, including China, Thailand, South Korea, Mexico and Canada and currently holds the WBC Asian crown.

Amir Khan said, “This is an exciting challenge that I have ahead of me. It will be the first time a British Pakistani will fight an Indian boxer, which eventually will bring the two nations together. I would like to thank the Saudi government and General Sports Authority for giving me this opportunity and I’m a firm believer in sport being a great healer.”

Neeraj Goyat said, “This opportunity is as big as it gets for me. Everything that I have achieved to date wouldn’t matter when I enter the ring on July 12 taking on a seasoned, established superstar in Amir Khan. I will be carrying the hopes of 1.2bn on my shoulders who will expect me to bring the title by causing an upset.”

The fight, officially endorsed by the Saudi General Sports Authority, fits into the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 Strategy, which was launched in April 2016 to rapidly modernise the country.

Saudi’s energetic young HRH Mohammed bin Salman Crown Prince, who is spearheading the Strategy, is determined to see his country move away from oil dependency towards a future that focuses on economic diversification, innovation and the creative self-fulfilment of its citizens.