Mike Tyson sued over a gambling promo that featured a giant talking pigeon

Mike Tyson is in a court fight over a pigeon. Not a real one this time.

Medier, the promoter for the online gambling brand Rabona, is suing the former heavyweight champion and his company Tyrannic in London's High Court. It says Tyson broke a January 2024 sponsorship deal worth $2 million. He was paid nearly $190,000 before the two sides parted ways.

The pigeon problem

The deal called for Tyson to promote the brand at live-streamed events and to attend a major gambling conference in Amsterdam from July 16 to 19, 2024.

One planned stream was a show called "Talking Pigeons." Tyson would read scripted lines with four presenters, one of them dressed as a giant pigeon. He would share childhood stories and then teach them to box using a mannequin with the face of his old rival Evander Holyfield.

Tyson's lawyer Amanda Hadkiss told the court that what Medier demanded went "far beyond the scope" of the contract. Tyson and his wife say the deal only covered him being filmed playing casino games or other approved games from the brand's website. They deny breaking the contract.

The Jake Paul factor

Medier's barrister Ali Reza Sinai called Tyson's Netflix fight with Jake Paul the "elephant in the room." He argued that Tyson "simply lost interest" once the $15 million exhibition was set.

That fight was first scheduled for July 20, 2024, just days after the Amsterdam event. Medier argues Tyson worried the trip would clash with limits on outside sponsorships in his Netflix deal. The bout was later moved to November and Paul won.

A lifelong pigeon fan

The twist is that few athletes love pigeons more than Tyson. He has raced them for years and wrote in his autobiography that caring for the birds helped him through a hard childhood in New York. He has also said he got into fighting after beating up a man who killed one of his pet pigeons.

Tyson is 60. He became the youngest heavyweight champion in history at age 20 in 1986. The hearing continues.