Mike Tyson Sued for $2M After Refusing to Participate in iGaming Promo with Talking Pigeon

Mike Tyson and his wife, Lakiha Spicer, are being sued for just under $2 million (£1.5 million) in London’s High Court over a collapsed promotional deal with Medier Ltd., the company behind the Rabona online gaming brand.

According to court documents obtained by Britain’s Daily Mail, Medier alleges that Tyson and his company, Tyrannic LLC—controlled by Spicer—breached an agreement by withdrawing from a planned appearance at the iGB (iGaming Business) Live 2024 gambling conference, held from July 16-19 of that year in Amsterdam.

According to the filing, Tyson agreed to participate in a Rabona promotional event at iGB, shortly before his exhibition fight with YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul. (Tyson’s bout with Paul, originally slated for July 20, 2024, was later postponed to Nov. 15, 2024 and streamed globally on Netflix.)

Medier claims Tyson backed out of his Rabona commitment after the Netflix fight—a far more lucrative proposition at around $15 million—came along. The company argues that after signing with Netflix, Tyson feared that his Amsterdam appearance would violate the global streamer’s restrictions on outside sponsorships during the lead-up to the bout.

Pigeon Impossible

The dispute centers on the nature of the promotional content Medier expected Tyson to perform.

The company planned a livestream titled “Talking Pigeons,” in which Tyson would deliver scripted dialog with four presenters, one dressed as a pigeon. Tyson was to share childhood stories, demonstrate boxing techniques using a mannequin featuring Evander Holyfield’s likeness, and play casino games on Rabona’s website.

Tyson and Tyrannic deny breaching the agreement. Their legal team argues Medier attempted to impose obligations far beyond the contract’s scope. According to Tyson’s attorney, Amanda Hadkiss, the contract limited Tyson’s performance to playing Rabona’s website gambling games.

She said the proposed pigeon themed livestream was “of a very different nature” and exceeded what Tyson had agreed to provide.

The contract between Medier and Tyrannic involved an installment-based fee totaling around $1.9 million (£1.5 million). Court documents show Tyson received nearly $190,000 (£145,000) before the parties separated.

Medier’s attorney, Ali Reza Sinai, argued Tyson and Tyrannic failed to perform required livestream events and improperly terminated the agreement. He described Tyson’s Netflix deal as “the elephant in the room,” asserting the fighter “simply lost interest” in the Rabona arrangement once the exhibition bout was confirmed.

Hadkiss countered that Tyrannic did not breach the contract by declining to participate in an event that exceeded the agreed-upon activities. She said Tyson’s refusal to attend the Amsterdam conference did not violate the terms of the service agreement.

The High Court hearing is ongoing.