- X Games Skateparks open in Franklin Mills in Philadelphia, Pa. (Aug. 26); Colorado Mills in Denver, Colo. (November 14) and Grapevine Mills in Dallas, Texas (December 3).
On November 21, ESPN selects Los Angeles to host X Games IX and X. The event’s primary venue will be inside and around STAPLES Center (Aug. 14-17), with ancillary venues at the Los Angeles Coliseum, Woodward West, Huntington Beach and others.
2003 - Winter X Games VII is held in Aspen, Colorado for its second year featuring the sports of Moto X, Ski, Snowboard and Snowmobile. Attendance over the four-day event is increased by more than 12,000 from last year, with a total of 48,700 spectators. Average viewership for Winter X Games VII across the three networks that carried coverage - ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC Sports - set an all-time record for the signature winter action sports championship event. Including all telecasts, the three networks garnered an average of 412,673 households, the highest in the event’s history and a 33% increase from the 310,810 average households for Winter X Games VI (2002).
- ESPN successfully executes the inaugural X Games Global Championship, held May 15-18. The first-of-its-kind team event features six world regions competing against each other in summer and winter action sports at two simultaneous venues: San Antonio, Texas and Whistler Blackcomb, B.C. Combining both venues, Team USA registered a cumulative total of 196 points, edging out Team Europe, which finished second with 167 points. In total, 69,260 spectators came to cheer on their favorite teams at X Games Global Championship.
On June 17, ESPN announces the return of Winter X Games to Aspen/Snowmass for a third winter – an unprecedented move for X Games.
July 1 kicked off a 41-day X Games tribute at Disney’s California Adventure™ in Anaheim, Calif., titled X Games Xperience. Guests of the newest theme park inside the Disneyland Resort were immersed in a fast-paced array of activities inspired by ESPN’s X Games, including interactive activities like Moto X big air demos and Vert ramp demos featuring X Games athletes.
X Games IX makes its debut in Los Angeles August 14-17 in its primary venue at STAPLES Center. Additional venues are in and around Los Angeles, including the Los Angeles Coliseum. Total attendance for the event is 187,141, including a one-day attendance record on Saturday (8/16) with 67,500. X Games Surfing also successfully debuts to a crowd of 25,500 in Huntington Beach and women’s Skateboard Park and Vert are made official X Games competitions. The telecast aired on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC and featured a live Bike Stunt Vert competition on ABC. It also captured the sought-after 12-17 year-old demographic, which achieved record results. People aged 12-17 increased 10% from last year’s telecast with an average of 162,621 viewers across all three networks.
2004 - The 10th anniversary of X Games is held August 5-8 in Los Angeles for its second consecutive year. Featuring a new finals-only format that is telecast completely live, 150 athletes compete in Aggressive In-line Skate, Bike Stunt, Moto X, Skateboard, Surf and Wakeboard. Venues include STAPLES Center, Home Depot Center, Huntington Beach Pier and Long Beach Marine Stadium. The event garners the highest viewership in the event’s 10-year history and a 47 percent increase from X Games Nine. Attendance over the four day period totals 170,471, including a new one-day attendance record set on Saturday, August 7 with 79,380. On Friday, August 6, X Games 10-year attendance hits the two million mark.
2005 - On April 27, an announcement is made that X Games will remain in Los Angeles through 2009.
- X Games 11 is held in Los Angeles August 4-7 at The Home Depot Center, STAPLES Center, Long Beach
Marine Stadium and Surfing’s new home of Puerto Escondido, Mexico. The event airs live on ESPN, ABC
and ESPN Deportes domestically in more than 75 countries and territories via ESPN International.
2006 - X Games 12 is held in Los Angeles August 3-6 adds the sport of Rally Car Racing and the new discipline of BMX Big Air to its sport lineup. More than 138,000 fans attended the competition at The Home Depot Center and STAPLES Center, an increase of nearly 13 percent over X Games 11 in 2005. X Games 12 was also ESPN's highest-rated X Games ever among young men in the 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54 age groups. For the first time, X Games was aired 24 hours each day of the event using ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, ESPN Classic, EXPN.com, ESPN360, Mobile ESPN, ESPN International, iTunes and provided unprecedented round-theclock coverage including a first-ever Pay-Per-View offering for BMX Big Air and an X Games Moto Madness demonstration.
Thanks to ESPN for providing this brief history of the X Games. Get more info and help with the X Games on the X Games Guide.
