X Games and U.S. Ski & Snowboard Join Forces To Create New Competition Series

Next winter, X Games and U.S. Ski & Snowboard are joining forces to create The Winter X Games Series, which will align and co-brand U.S. Ski & Snowboard events—including U.S. Ski & Snowboard World Cup events, the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix, and Visa Big Air—with X Games.

The collaboration will create a new pathway for athletes to reach X Games. Winners of the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix and Visa Big Air will receive X Games invitations. If those winners are already invitees, second-place finishers will earn the invitations.

U.S. Ski & Snowboard's development series, the Revolution Tour, will also be co-branded with X Games.

The X Games Series will inject the U.S. Ski & Snowboard schedule with progressive flavor, offering X Games-specific events like street style and knuckle huck during U.S. World Cup weekends.

U.S. Ski & Snowboard and X Games aim to undergo co-promotion efforts and share content, intensifying the spotlight on involved athletes and events.

"Collaborating with X Games is an exciting step forward in our mission to provide more world class competitive opportunities for freeskiers and snowboarders," said Sophie Goldschmidt, U.S. Ski & Snowboard President and CEO.

Earlier this summer, X Games unveiled the X Games League (XGL) , a unique, team-based competition circuit billed as a fresh take on the competitive scene of freeskiing and snowboarding.

The XGL borrows elements from mainstream sports like drafts, consistent event schedules, and annual incomes for athletes in the hopes of making niche snow sports disciplines more digestible to mainstream audiences and increasing viewership.

"To that end, we are creating a year-round calendar and introducing new commercial opportunities to accelerate the overall growth of X Games," said Jeff Moorad, executive chairman of X Games, noting that the XGL was modeled after an already-popular sports league, Formula One.

Two XGL circuits are planned: one for winter and one for summer. Each will have four events at the series' outset.

The League's announcement generated a positive response amongst professional freeskiers. "Any sort of innovation in this competition space or in this part of action sports is amazing," said Slopestyle Olympian turned halfpipe skier Nick Goepper in a recent conversation with The Good Enough Podcast.

The launch of XGL is two years away in 2026. Scott Guglielmino, X Games President and COO, said the partnership with U.S. Ski & Snowboard "will allow us to deliver on the promise of more world-class competitions and a more consistent schedule for the athletes… as we build toward the X Games League format."

The XGL isn't the only new rodeo in town. Shaun White's Snow League , another novel competitive circuit that includes freeskiing and snowboarding, debuts in 2025.

"With the recent announcements from X Games regarding their expansion to include more events in various locations and Shaun White's Snow League, these sports have unmistakable momentum in the market, and we are enthusiastic to work together to see them grow," said Goldschmidt, the president and CEO of U.S. Ski & Snowboard.

More information about The Winter X Games Series collaboration between X Games and U.S. Ski & Snowboard, including event locations and dates, is forthcoming.

Related: The Silverton Reset

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