NEW YORK, March 5 (UPI) -- Fox Sports will launch a new cable television sports network called Fox Sports 1 in August, company officials said Tuesday.
Fox Sports Media Co-Presidents Randy Freer and Eric Shanks announced in New York the new channel will replace the company's Speed Network in cable and satellite lineups starting Aug. 17.
The new channel will initially include college basketball, college football, NASCAR, soccer and ultimate fighting.
Starting in 2014, Major League Baseball games will also be shown on Fox Sports 1 as part of Fox Sports' agreement with MLB.
The new channel will compete with Disney Corp.'s long-established ESPN for live sports programming.
"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," Shanks said.
