Katie Taylor: 'It's frustrating to think if I was a male, I'd be an absolute multi, multi, multi-millionaire'

In attendance at Croke Park in Dublin, to mark the launch of the 2026 Lidl Ladies National Football Leagues is Olympic gold medallist and two-time undisputed world champion boxer Katie Taylor. Pic: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

Katie Taylor said she is hugely frustrated by the gender pay gap which exists in boxing. The Bray woman said if she was a male fighter who had achieved all she has in her 20-year career, she’d be “an absolute multi, multi, multi-millionaire”.

The two-weight undisputed world champion is currently on a break from the sport, still training, just not at her usual high level of intensity.

She last fought in July when she beat Amanda Serrano in their trilogy bout at Madison Square Garden, an event watched by six million viewers on Netflix. 

She was reported to have earned around €5.1m – perhaps more – for that fight.

“The inequalities are also still there within the pay gap as well,” Taylor said at the launch of the Lidl Ladies National Football League at Croke Park on Tuesday.

“In my world, the best paid female fighters - probably myself and Amanda Serrano - are still far away off from the best male fighters.

“And all of this is a complex issue because you need fights that capture the interest of fans. You need to have fighters that capture the imagination of fans, and personalities, they capture the imagination of fans as well.

“Particularly myself and Amanda have that in abundance. We fought at Madison Square Garden twice. We fought with millions of people watching live on Netflix and DAZN and still got a fraction of the pay that males get.

“I think we are making great, great progress in that area, but it's very, very slow and it's very, very frustrating to think if I was a male, I'd be an absolute multi, multi, multi-millionaire now.

“But the pay gap is a big one for me. I don't understand why If I was a male... (I'd be paid more). We sell out these stadiums and we still have millions of viewers watching and the pay is still a fraction of what a male would get. And that's very, very frustrating.” 

Taylor said she has had discussions with promoters in which she’s pointed out the disparity despite that draw which she brings to the table.

“Those are conversations I've actually had with the promoters,” she said.

“I've said 'that's an insult'. We are drawing the line back slowly and surely. It is slow progress, you can't expect to get there straight away. I love the progress that I have made over the last few years. It's just very frustrating at times.” 2026 is likely to be the final year of Taylor’s career. She would love to end it with a fight at Croke Park.

"I was thinking after my last fight, an amazing trilogy against Amanda Serrano, that I would love to end my career here in Ireland,” she told RTÉ.

"This is my last year, probably, in the ring boxing. I'm going to be 40 this year.

"I would love to end my career here. And I would absolutely love to have an opportunity to fight here in Croke Park. That would be the icing on the cake for me.”