Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul was sure one interesting fight to watch, at least for some. Pardon the streaming issues pun, but in all seriousness, everything seemed to work out, didn’t it? Despite the renowned YouTuber’s victory over the iconic boxer, both Tyson and Paul were seen cashing out with a significant payday, something that left USMNT icons Landon Donovan and Tim Howard a bit disappointed.

Well, in all fairness, they aren’t alone; the majority of the sporting world had their obvious discontent to share over how the fight turned out to be, not matching the expectations as well as the hype it was created during its promotion. For Howard, though, more than calling it scripted, it turned out to be a pretty good business for Paul.

“I think Jake Paul’s brilliant. He’s a brilliant businessman,” said the former USA goalkeeper on the latest podcast episode of Unfiltered Soccer, which he co-hosts alongside Landon Donovan, praising the 27-year-old’s ability to turn average boxing into quite an entertaining one, almost as if he multiplied and boosted the viewership from a mere eight to an impressive 80 million, helping the sport draw more eyes.

Howard then heaped praise on one of the greatest boxers of all time, insisting that despite criticism, one shall respect Tyson for giving his all to make the fight happen, especially when considering the age factor. “You saw there, by round three, he [Tyson] was gassed but big credit to Mike Tyson. At his age, getting out there, stepping in the ring…what a legend,”

Then again, the iconic goalie was quick enough to take a dig at both Paul and Tyson for going home with their pockets filled. “But it wasn’t a great fight, but a big payday,” said Tim, before Donovan also took a shot at both boxers getting a ‘Huge’ payday, even though the former striker never understood boxing.

“It was exciting to watch [but] I’m just gonna come out and say…I don’t wanna say fixed, but is there like an unwritten ‘I’m not gonna hit you, you’re not gonna hit me?’ Because they didn’t even fight, they’re just dancing around. So is that an unwritten thing, do you get in the ring and you’re like ‘Oh, this guy could really hurt me,'” bluntly added Donovan, before taking a dig at their promotion.

More dig from USMNT icons on the ‘wink-wink’ Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul fight!

Landon Donovan further expressed his displeasure over the fight, stating that, unlike the way both Jake Paul and Mike Tyson were seen preparing for the fight, the match completely skitted off the expectations. “When you watch the training clip, you’re like, ‘These two look good,'” said LD, adding that both fighters mislead their ardent fans. However, Howard, a great boxing fan, eventually shared the stark reality with Donovan.

He insisted that “Cash is king.” The former Manchester United goalie also insisted that Paul had no choice but to bring someone like Tyson, who was struggling financially. Hence, it was one of the only roads for the iconic boxer to make a whopping sum of $30 million. “So is it a wink-wink, nod-nod? Yeah, absolutely!” concluded Howard, defending the pre-fight agreement between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson.

Clearly, both Tim Howard and Landon Donovan aren’t impressed with the money business from Jake Paul and Mike Tyson. Regardless, share your thoughts in the comments.