When are the X Games held and what events are included?

You may have heard of the X Games – after all, the event is due to celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2025 – but if you don’t follow, you may have little idea about just what it entails. Here’s the skinny.

The place to watch action sports

Having begun life as a media extravaganza sponsored by ESPN in 1995, the X Games is the world’s premier multi-sport event devoted to action sports (also known as extreme sports). In a world where skateboarding, BMX, and snowboarding had yet to find any sort of legitimacy in the mainstream media, the X Games in its earliest incarnation in the 1990s shone a spotlight on the world’s foremost athletes in these disciplines. Personalities such as Shaun White and Tony Hawk, who became the first person in history to land a 900-degree aerial turn at the 1999 edition, saw their profiles significantly raised by their appearances at the event. When it came to heightening the sports’ popularity, it worked; in 2008, for example, the Summer Olympics featured BMX as a medal sport, while skateboarding debuted in 2020.

When are the X Games?

On its debut in 1995, the plan was to organize the games biannually. However, it proved so successful that the X Games soon switched to being an annual event. These days, the games have summer and winter versions. in recent years, however, the games have featured multiple editions annually on various continents, with European editions in France and Norway, and Asian events in China and Japan, as well as others. The most recent summer edition was held last month at various venues in California.

What events can you expect?

Although such events as street luge and bungee jumping have long been discontinued, the Summer X Games are still the go-to place for BMX, Moto X, and skateboarding, with the most recent editions also seeing the introduction of E-sports. Expect slopestyle skiing and snowboarding at the Winter Games, too, but the current events still cover no shortage of bases.