South Africa could host the annual World Boxing Council (WBC) convention this year already, says the sanctioning body’s president, Mauricio Sulaimán.
The 2026 edition is scheduled to start in Abu Dhabi in late November, but with US-Iran hostilities continuing, there’s a chance they might need a new venue.
“I’m really eager to discuss the specifics with [sport] minister [Gayton] McKenzie, with Emperors Palace,” said Sulaimán, in the country for last night’s WBC minimumweight title clash between Melvin Jerusalem and local hope Siyakholwa Kuse.
Asked when it might come to South Africa, the 56-year-old said: “We’re still looking if it will happen in Abu Dhabi or not. Could be next year, could be 2028.”
Sulaimán, who was scheduled to visit Soweto’s famous Vilakazi Street yesterday morning, is eager to help South Africa develop its professional and amateur boxers. “There are many ideas, but we are not just talk. We walk the talk.”
The WBC is the most respected of boxing’s alphabet organisations, and while purists detest the proliferation of bodies and titles, Sulaimán has a different outlook.
A little sad at times, a little lonely at times, but I would say it’s been a blessing for me to continue in boxing
— Mauricio Sulaimán, WBC president
He drew a parallel to American football, where teams first had to win divisions and conferences, with the last two facing off for the undisputed title. “I understand that there’s confusion [with the different bodies and different champions], but if you [look] it’s good for boxers — they make money. Here in South Africa, there are many IBO [International Boxing Organisation] fights. It’s good for them.”
Sulaimán has been WBC president for 12 years, elected to replace his father, José, who died in 2014 after 38 years in office. That’s half a century with a Sulaimán at the helm.
But the WBC boss insisted the body was not a family business, saying his father had not even planned to groom him. “We have a factory [making medical supplies]. We are fortunately economically well off, and we don’t make money from boxing,” he said, adding his three brothers and two sisters had no role in boxing other than as fans.
But when his father fell ill with cancer in his early 70s, Sulaimán stepped in to shield him from most of the pressures of the job, a 24-hour-a-day position. “When my father passed away, I thought my tenure in the WBC had finished.”
But the thousands of people who came to pay respects to José, from the rich to the poor, changed that. “My mother and my wife said: ‘You cannot just abandon it; you should stay in the WBC’.”
Sulaimán would have settled for a supporting role, but when the WBC met to elect a new president a few weeks later, they voted him in.
“It has helped me feel him present at all times,” said the father of three, estimating he didn’t get to spend more than a week at home at a time. “A little sad at times, a little lonely at times, but I would say it’s been a blessing for me to continue in boxing.”
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