Belfast’s rich boxing history
Few cities of Belfast’s size have produced as many world champion boxers as Northern Ireland’s capital. LiveScore Bet is a mobile-first sportsbook platform that has become home to some of boxing’s most passionate fans, and the sport itself has been woven into the fabric of Belfast life for the best part of a century. From the post-war era to the present day, the city has produced fighters who have competed at the very highest level and inspired generations of young boxers to follow in their footsteps.
Rinty Monaghan: The foundation
Belfast’s boxing story begins properly with Rinty Monaghan, born in Lancaster Street in North Belfast in 1918 and widely regarded as the city’s first great world champion. After entertaining British troops across Europe during the Second World War, including singing and dancing on the beaches of Normandy just days after D-Day, Monaghan returned to the ring with a vengeance.
In October 1947, he defeated Dado Marino in London to claim the NBA flyweight world title, and in March 1948, he became the undisputed world flyweight champion by knocking out Jackie Paterson in the seventh round at the King’s Hall in Belfast, a venue that packed to the rafters for his every appearance.
He retired undefeated as world champion in 1950 due to a chronic bronchial condition, his headstone in Belfast City Cemetery bearing the inscription: Undefeated World Flyweight Champion. His habit of singing When Irish Eyes Are Smiling to the crowd after his victories made him as beloved a figure in Belfast as any the city has produced.
Carl Frampton: The Tiger’s Bay legend
Carl Frampton is the greatest Belfast boxer of the modern era and one of the finest fighters Britain and Ireland have ever produced. The Tiger’s Bay man won his first world title in 2014, stopping Kiko Martinez to claim the IBF super-bantamweight championship, and defended it three times before making history in 2016 by defeating Leo Santa Cruz at Madison Square Garden to become a two-weight world champion at featherweight.
His two fights with Santa Cruz, the second of which Santa Cruz won on points in Las Vegas, were among the most entertaining boxing matches of the decade. Frampton’s combination of technical skill, granite chin, and an ability to perform at his best on the biggest occasions made him a genuinely elite fighter.
His career inspired a generation of Belfast boxers, Anthony Cacace among them, who has spoken publicly about how Frampton made a world title feel achievable for a kid from the city.
Ryan Burnett: A career cut short
Ryan Burnett’s story is one of the most bittersweet in Belfast boxing. The former Youth Olympics gold medallist won the IBF bantamweight world title in 2017 and added the WBA strap the following year, becoming a unified world champion.
A mandatory defence of his IBF title against Zhanat Zhakiyanov at the SSE Arena in Belfast in 2018 was his last successful world title bout in the city, and a persistent back injury that had troubled him throughout his career ultimately forced him to retire aged just 27. The talent was never in question. The cruelty of the injury denied Belfast the world-class career Burnett deserved.
Anthony Cacace: West Belfast’s world champion
Anthony Cacace announced himself to the world in stunning fashion in May 2024 when he stopped the previously undefeated Joe Cordina in the eighth round in Saudi Arabia to claim the IBF super-featherweight world title.
The West Belfast man was 35 at the time, and the victory was the culmination of a career built on patience, resilience, and a refusal to be discouraged by the setbacks that came his way. He successfully defended the title against Josh Warrington at Wembley Stadium in September 2024 and remains one of the world’s top junior lightweights, a world champion who proved that persistence in Belfast boxing can ultimately be rewarded.
Lewis Crocker: Carrying the torch
The most recent addition to Belfast’s world champion roll of honour, Lewis Crocker claimed the IBF welterweight title in September 2025 with a composed counter-punching display against Irish rival Paddy Donovan in Belfast, having been disqualified in their first meeting six months earlier.
Crocker’s victory was celebrated as much for what it represented as for the performance itself, a new Belfast world champion to carry the torch passed down from Monaghan through Frampton, Burnett, and Cacace. Speaking after the win, Crocker reflected simply: for my name to be on that list now is history. In Belfast, it always will be.
