This wasn’t on my book list at all until I watched the new 6-part Netflix documentary called ‘Matchroom: The Greatest Showmen’ which takes viewers behind the scenes of Matchroom Sport, the powerhouse of global sports promotion and founded by Barry Hearn and now led by his son, Eddie.
I saw that Barry had written his autobiography in 2022 so I decided to find out more about him and his rise within sport.
Barry Hearn’s memoir, My Life, is part comedic and part playbook for building an empire from a snooker hall start. The book tracks his training as a chartered accountant from Dagenham who turned Matchroom into a global multi-sport promotion machine across snooker, darts, boxing, fishing and more. The latest version of the book charts the last decade’s expansion and the father-son baton.
There are some notable stories throughout the book:
How a £500 Deposit Built a Multi-Sport Empire
Matchroom’s origin story is pure Hearn. He took a £500 deposit and bought his first snooker hall. He quickly realised he wasn’t in the snooker business, he was in the entertainment business. That shift in mindset turned a one-room hall into a global group promoting snooker, darts, golf, pool, ten-pin bowling and even poker. “Once you’ve built one successful model,” he says, “you just keep applying it to new worlds.”
In the late 1970s, Hearn spotted a quiet red-haired teenager in one of his Romford snooker halls, Steve Davis. Davis’s mum approached Hearn to see if he might manage him. The “contract” was scribbled on a scrap of paper. Hearn would pay Davis’s expenses and take 25% of his winnings. That handshake deal turned into one of sport’s most successful partnerships. Within a few years, Davis was earning millions, dominating the snooker world and putting Matchroom on the map.
Table 13 to Television Millions
Hearn buys into the Lucania snooker halls, spots a skinny kid at the Romford club and rides the colour-TV snooker boom to create Matchroom and a stable of stars. It’s the origin myth that explains everything else: see talent early, back it hard, then build formats and TV around it.
From Smoky Halls to Stadiums
You get back-room boxing deals, Benn/Eubank mania and the craft of making events feel bigger than the sport. The book revels in those near-misses and big swings that promoters live for.
Inventing Spectacles
Only Hearn would launch a made-for-TV fishing tournament, FishOMania and make it work, proof he sees “product” where others see pastime.
Near-Death Perspective
A minor heart attack in 2020 adds bite to his “life’s short, crack on” mantra and he becomes more reflective without losing the grin.
Barry Hearn’s Ten Commandments
Hearn sets out his ‘Ten Commandments’ as his rules for life and business:
- It’s better to be born lucky than good-looking (but you must be ready when luck knocks).
- Tell the truth. It’s easier than telling lies.
- Sheer work ethic can make you look like a genius.
- Pressure is only felt by those who fail.
- You will run a better business and live a better life if you think poor.
- Unusual things happen every day; it’s how you deal with them that makes you unusual.
- Life ends in tears, so smile the rest for the rest of it.
- Your life doesn’t change by sitting on the sofa.
- Avoid being a secret: if you’re good, admit it and shout it from the rooftops.
- When you need a hand, you are more likely to get a kick in the nuts
They’re part deadpan Essex humour and part ruthless operating code.
If you enjoyed the recent Netflix documentary, you will certainly enjoy the book. You can almost hear Barry as you read it and there is a lot of humour in there.