Slaw Dog
ESPN has sold a majority interest in X Games, the global action sports franchise it founded in 1995, to MSP Sports Capital, a New York-based private equity firm with investments in McLaren Racing Limited and four European soccer teams, the company announced on Wednesday.
The first X Games were held in 1995 and was known as the “Extreme Games”. Since that first contest, X Games has launched the careers of a ton of action sports stars, including motocross/FMX athletes like Travis Pastrana, Brian Deegan and new stars such as Axell Hodges and Colby Raha.
“ESPN’s X Games gave a platform to a new group of sports and allowed a lifestyle to grow into legitimate sports,” Pastrana told ESPN. “Before X Games, most of our sports were dead-end hobbies. Now, kids growing up on skateboards and BMX bikes are encouraged to chase their dreams.”
MSP Sports Capital will take over day-to-day business operations of X Games, but ESPN will retain a minority interest and continue to air X Games on TV in the U.S.
