Ask Anne: What Does the Word Purse Mean in Boxing?

By Anne “Boxologist” Whitlock

When you hear the word purse in boxing it is the money paid to two professional boxers for engaging in a fight. The amount of the purse is contractually guaranteed prior to the fight and is not altered by the outcome of the fight. Promoters pay the boxers the purse and out of the purse a boxer pays his corner men (manager, trainer and cutman) a percentage. Sanctioning bodies also demand a percentage of the purse. Boxers usually end up with 50 to 70 percent before taxes.