Rugby is the latest sport to find itself on FOX Sports 1 as the fledgling 24-hour sports channel builds out its offerings.

A first-ever rugby match-up featuring the famed New Zealand “All Blacks” team and the USA Men’s Eagles will air this November on FOX Sports 1, the channel announced Tuesday.

The inaugural “Black and Blue Match” kicks off at Philadelphia’s PPL Park on Nov. 9, with the broadcast airing the following day on the new rival channel that FOX hopes will take on ESPN.

“USA Rugby is very excited about FOX Sports 1 airing the match from Philadelphia,” USA Rugby Chief Commercial Officer Jon Persch said. “FOX Sports 1 offers USA Rugby the greatest number of viewers with the new channel being offered in 90 million homes.”

FOX Sports 1 debuted in August on all of the major pay-TV distributors, placing it just 8 million homes shy of chief rival ESPN.

In addition to USA Rugby, the new channel features programming from NASCAR, UFC, NFL, MLB, soccer and boxing.

Although rugby has a small following Stateside, the November match could draw die-hard fans to the new channel. New Zealand’s “All Blacks” are the current Rugby World Cup title-holders, and ranked #1 in the world by the International Rugby Board. They are also famous for their traditional pre-game Maori haka dance used to intimidate their rivals. That also means it might not be the most thrilling match—the U.S. is currently ranked 18th in the world out of 25 teams,

Brief take: FOX Sports 1 continues to cast a wide net in search of content as it builds its arsenal of offerings.

Tags:


  Save as PDF