![Half of Sydney’s pubs have refused to show the highly anticipated bout for fear of what one Sydney publican described to the Telegraph as the ‘transient [Irish] backpacker’. Photograph: Getty Images](https://www.irishtimes.com/resizer/v2/KZV67ACLW2GO63KKKCDSE6GGXA.jpg?auth=3bffd5c43287a966bb05d93f29c1cf54271141dc3bc1214e8cbd0fc804f71c32&smart=true&width=1024&height=576)
What some people are calling the fight of the century takes place this Saturday 26 August when Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor will finally put talk aside and meet inside the boxing ring. So far and within Dublin at least, very few venues have committed to showing the fight, which will take place in the very early hours of Sunday morning.
A McGregor fight watched in Ireland with a crowd is always the epitome of collective sports spectatorship. However, by the time the main event will begin at 4am and the fight itself begins probably closer to 5am, the sun will be on its ascent, everyone will be exhausted, and half the room will have drunk so much that they won't remember the fight come Sunday lunch time. Half of Sydney's pubs have refused to show the highly anticipated bout for fear of what one Sydney publican described to the Telegraph as the 'transient [Irish] backpacker' and the destruction a horde of such bedraggled but passionate beings could allegedly wreak in the event of a McGregor loss.
If you can find a venue to watch the fight – Bluebell United Soccer Club in Clondalkin, Mc Gregor's Alma Mater (as it were) Crumlin Boxing Club and Vue Cinema in Liffey Valley will all be hosting showings – then the excitement of the crowd and electricity of the atmosphere will likely make the late night worth it.
However, since there are far more fans than locations that can fit them, and since everyone from fanatical boxing and MMA fans to your neighbour’s second cousin’s elderly grandmother will have an interest in this fight, it is entirely worth buying and watching at home.
It will cost less than you might think. Sky Sports Box Office will be showing the fight for €24.95 in the Republic of Ireland. You can buy the fight online here, through a Sky box or by phone at 0818 220 225. You don't have to be a Sky customer to buy the fight as a one-off and stream it live. Invite some friends round, don't let them in unless they bring a pizza and some beers, and make a night of it. If you'd rather wait until a sensible hour, the fight will be repeated in full at 10am and again at 5pm on Sunday.
However you watch it and whatever the outcome, fans won't want to miss this fight. Sporting history will be made in the darkest hours of Sunday morning.
