LIVERPOOL, UK – After almost a year of industry research and behind-the-scenes preparation, the Global Fighters’ Association (GFA) has today announced the first in a 12-month programme of nationwide “Select Committee”-style roundtables, marking the organisation’s formal move into the public domain as a representative body for fighters, workers, and fans in combat sport.
Designed in partnership with senior political and sporting strategists, these expert-led forums will bring together voices from across the industry to explore some of the sport’s most urgent and long-standing issues – from judging and officiating, to welfare, safety, inclusion, education, and accountability.
The first roundtable, taking place in May, will focus on one of the most pressing concerns in the sport today: the judging of professional bouts. Following widespread public and athlete concern over transparency and consistency in scoring, the GFA will commission a full independent review to explore how judging decisions are currently made, how they are scrutinised, and how standards can be improved.
The roundtables will be led and reported on by independent legal professionals with experience in athlete welfare, governance, and sport regulation. Participants will include former fighters of all levels and disciplines, judges, referees, coaches, promoters, broadcasters, gym owners, medical professionals, and financial and legal experts.
GFA Co-Founder Paul Smith Jr. said: “This is about opening the door to real dialogue. Fighters have too often been ignored when it comes to how the sport is run. These roundtables are a chance to bring together the right people with the right level of experience, to ask and answer the hardest, most important questions. We believe these reports will help bring more protection for fighters, more transparency for the fans and will help grow the sport.”
Broadcaster and GFA Co-Founder Nick Peet added: “Boxing and combat sport have huge global potential – but the foundations have to be right. This isn’t about pointing fingers; it’s about creating space for proper reform, rooted in lived experience and expert knowledge.”
While the GFA will publish the findings and recommendations from each roundtable, no outcomes or policies are being predetermined.
Topics for discussion in the inaugural roundtables will include:
Transparency and consistency in professional bout scoring
Qualifications, accountability, and training for judges
Standards for post-fight review procedures
Potential models for structured scoring reviews
The GFA roundtables are the first in a series of public-facing activities the organisation will undertake ahead of its formal launch later this year.
Roberto Villa is the CEO, Founder, Executive Writer, Senior Editor of FightBook MMA. Has a passion for Combat Sports and also a podcast host for Sitting Ringside. He’s also a former MMA fighter and Kickboxer.
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