For the first time in nearly twenty years, professional paintball will make its return to televisions across the world on ESPN, the worldwide leader in sports. During the NXL Mid Atlantic Major event hosted in Atlantic City, a production company filmed the professional field finals for a post-production show to be featured on ESPN. Known for its vibrant entertainment scene and as a hub for major events, Atlantic City provides an ideal backdrop for this historic broadcast. This marks a major milestone for the sport of paintball in a deal that MLPB President Tom Cole was critical in creating with the largest sports network in the world.
Two decades ago, some of the games most iconic players like Oliver Lang, Chris Lasoya, and Ryan Greenspan made their mark and rose to national stardom when ESPN featured the US Paintball Championships. Paintball, already on an upward trajectory at the time, exploded across the country becoming the fastest growing extreme sport in the United States from the increased exposure. The resurgence of paintball on ESPN is not only a nostalgic nod to its heyday but also a strategic move to reignite the sport's popularity and introduce it to a new generation of viewers.
The Mid Atlantic Major Professional Paintball finals is set to appear on August 4th on ESPN: The Ocho during their 2024 schedule this summer and could garner millions of new views in one of the largest non-participant exposures the sport has ever had. This will truly be the next step for the growth of paintball in America and push it back into the national spotlight for years to come. This renewed visibility will stimulate a fresh wave of interest and participation in paintball, attracting both former enthusiasts and newcomers and showcase the high-energy, tactical gameplay that paintball is known for.
The broadcast on ESPN could act as a catalyst for renewed investment in the sport, from grassroots levels to professional circuits. Historically viewed as a niche sport, mainstream media coverage has the power to frame paintball as the legitimate professional sport it is rather than just a recreational pastime.
More details on the schedule will follow with continued coverage of this historic step for the National XBall League.