Barry Hearn (born 1948)[1] is an English sporting events promoter, and the founder and chairman of promotions company Matchroom Sport. He is currently the chairman of Leyton Orient F.C., and the Professional Darts Corporation and was also until July 2010 chairman of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA). His involvement with the WPBSA continues in that, following a vote by the members (the world's top players) in June 2010, he has taken a directorship and controlling interest in the organisation's commercial arm, World Snooker Limited with a view to revitalising the game.[2]
Through Matchroom, Hearn is also involved in many other sports, including pool, tenpin bowling, golf (see PGA EuroPro Tour) and fishing.
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Hearn was born in Dagenham, East London, and educated at Buckhurst Hill County High School before qualifying as an accountant in 1970. His first business success came buying and selling a chain of snooker halls. Hearn after working for a firm of accountants took over the role of accountant to a design company based in Kensal Green called Deryck Healey Associates (circa 1973). He formed a new company, Kensal House Investments, and DHA became Deryck Healey International (DHI). During the mid to late 1970's the company bought Lucania Billiard Halls which formed the basis of his future career, promoting snooker via colour television. There were two directors, Deryck John Healey and Barry Hearn.
He began promoting sporting events in 1974, working with amateur snooker players Geoff Foulds, father of Neal Foulds, and Vic Harris before becoming, in 1976, manager of Steve Davis, who went on to win the world championship six times.
Hearn prospered from the snooker boom of the 1980s when he formed Matchroom with players Davis and Tony Meo. Later Matchroom snooker players include Terry Griffiths, Dennis Taylor, Willie Thorne, Neal Foulds, Jimmy White, Cliff Thorburn and Ronnie O'Sullivan. Hearn appeared alongside many Matchroom players in the video for "Snooker Loopy", a hit for "rockney" pop rock duo Chas & Dave.
Hearn moved into boxing in 1987, his first promotion being the Frank Bruno versus Joe Bugner bout at White Hart Lane in October 1987. He has since promoted many leading British and Irish boxers, including Chris Eubank, Nigel Benn, Lennox Lewis, Naseem Hamed, Steve Collins and Herbie Hide.
Hearn withdrew his boxers Herbie Hide and Steve Collins from the High Noon in Hong Kong event at the last minute, scheduled on 22 October 1994, when promoter John Daly could not come up with the purses.[3] Hearn said, "But to be honest I was very pleased with myself in Hong Kong. I stood my ground. How many others would have?"[4]
In April 2008 Hearn introduced the Prizefighter series, a knockout tournament featuring 8 different boxers in a sort of last man standing competition.
Hearn has been chairman of the football league club Leyton Orient since 1995. Prior to Hearn's takeover the club was facing a financial disaster due to the collapse of the then chairman Tony Wood's coffee business in Rwanda at the time of the Rwandan Genocide. Hearn's intervention and financial input assured the club's future. Although Hearn has been successful in stabilising the club financially his tenure has overseen the club's longest run in the bottom division (the fourth tier) of the Football League since its creation (in 1958).
At the culmination of the 2005–06 season, Orient earned promotion to the third tier of English league football (League One), this being their first automatic promotion since the 1969–70 season.
Hearn is the chairman of the Professional Darts Corporation, one of darts' two governing bodies, the sport having been split since the world's leading players left the British Darts Organisation in 1992. He has made several attempts to buy out the rival body, which would reunify the game, but has been unsuccessful.[5]