Fox Sports 1 to Launch August 17th

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The rumors are now a reality.

Fox Sports Media Group (FSMG) announced today that it will officially launch it’s multi-sports network, Fox Sports 1 (FS1) on August 17th.  It will be the biggest sports network launch in history, with over 90 million homes being served on day one.

Fox Sports 1 will tap into Fox Sports Group’s ever-growing inventory of college football, college basketball, NASCAR, UFC and soccer programming.  At it’s launch the new network is committed to over 5000 hours of live event, news and original programming annually.  In 2014 FS1 will also carry Major League Baseball telecasts.

“Fans are ready for an alternative to the establishment, and our goal for FS1 is to provide the best in-game experience possible, complemented by informative news, entertaining studio shows and provocative original programming.” said Fox Sports Media Group Co-President and COO Eric Shanks.

“As a company we haven’t been afraid to innovate and take well-calculated risks,” added Fox Sports Media Group Co-President and COO Randy Freer. “We’ve devoted significant resources over the last few years to acquire and/or extend multi-platform rights with a wide variety of leagues and governing bodies well into the next decade, enough to give us a rich schedule right out of the box.”

FS1 will also be the home to a sports news operation entitled Fox Sports LIVE, with hourly updates and a nightly highlight show taking place at 11:00p.m. ET.  Plans are in the works for a morning show set for launch in January in conjunction with Fox’ coverage of Super Bowl XLVIII.

FS1 will also launch a series of original programs which will air weeknights.  Rush Hour, hosted by Regis Philbin, will air weekdays at 5:00p.m. ET.  Fox Football Daily, hosted by Fox personalities Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Jay Glazer, Gus Johnson, Erin Andrews and Mike Pereira, will air at 6:00p.m. ET.

FS1 will also be the home to the FSMG documentary series Being.

From Fox Sports PR, here is a look at the sports inventory expected to air on Fox Sports 1:

COLLEGE BASKETBALL – Dozens of exclusive prime time games on Monday and Thursday nights, plus Saturday and Sunday coverage of the Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL – Led by Notre Dame at Stanford, the Big Ten Championship Game and Pac-12 Championship Game (2014) on FOX, dozens of  exclusive, live games from the Pac-12, Big 12 and Conference USA on Thursday nights and Saturdays; triple- and quadruple-headers on Saturdays; Saturday pre- and postgame coverage.

MLB – Beginning in 2014, select League Championship Series and Division Series games; regular-season games over 26 Saturdays; live game-in-progress look-in show.

NASCAR – Select NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races as soon as 2015; NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races; NASCAR Sprint All-Star race; all Speedweeks events leading up to the Daytona 500 including: Daytona 500 Qualifying, Sprint Unlimited at Daytona (2014, 2017-22) and the Budweiser Duel, now in prime time; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NCWTS Practice and Qualifying sessions; NASCAR RaceDay, providing pre- and post-race coverage; NASCAR Victory Lane, a weekly wrap-up show; and Race Hub, a daily mid-day studio show with the latest from drivers, owners and garages.

SOCCER – Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday afternoon coverage of the world’s most prolific club soccer competitions, the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, and CONCACAF Champions League featuring many of the world’s greatest and most successful clubs; the world’s oldest soccer competition, the FA Cup; CONCACAF Gold Cup; CONCACAF Qualifiers, FIFA Women’s World Cup coverage in 2015 and 2019; FIFA Men’s World Cup coverage in 2018 and 2022; delayed matches in prime time; weekly magazine and highlights shows.

UFC – Featured on Wednesday nights; live FIGHT NIGHTS through 2014, the first is scheduled for launch night,Saturday, Aug. 17; FOX event preliminary cards; UFC Tonight, the weekly authority for UFC news and information; 14 Saturday pay-per-view preliminary cards; hundreds of hours of library programs and events.

Also announced today is the companion to Fox Sports 1– Fox Sports GO – a mobile compliment for iPhone, iPad, Android devices, and web. FOX Sports Go will offer more than 1,000 live games and events from across Fox Sports, Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports’ 22 regional sports networks, as well as scores, highlights, news, stats, and analysis.  The live games and events will be available to subscribers of participating cable, satellite, and telco providers at no additional cost.