Fox Sports (Mexico)

Last updated

Fox Sports
CountryMexico
Broadcast area Mexico
Headquarters Mexico City, Mexico
Programming
Language(s)Spanish
Picture format HDTV 1080i
(downscaled to 480i/576i for the SD feed)
Ownership
OwnerGrupo Multimedia Lauman
History
LaunchedFox Sports:
31 October 1995 (1995-10-31)
Fox Sports 2:
12 October 2009 (2009-10-12)
Fox Sports 3:
5 November 2012 (2012-11-05)
Replaced Speed (Fox Sports 3)
Former namesPrime Deportiva (1995–1996)
Fox Sports Americas (1996–1999)
Links
Website www.foxsports.com.mx

Fox Sports is a Mexican pay television network operated by Grupo Multimedia Lauman. The network focuses on sports-related programming including live and pre-recorded event broadcasts, sports talk shows and original programming, available throughout Mexico. The network continues to use the Fox Sports name under a license agreement that is currently under legal dispute with brand owner Fox Corporation. [1]

Contents

History

Fox Sports logo, used from 2009 to 2012. Fox Sports logo.jpg
Fox Sports logo, used from 2009 to 2012.

The network was launched in 1996 as Prime Deportiva, under the ownership of Liberty Media. Prior to its launch, on October 31, 1995, News Corporation acquired a 50% ownership interest in Liberty's Prime Network group and its international networks (including sister channels Premier Sports and Prime Sports Asia) as part of an expansion of its Fox Sports properties in the Americas. [2] [3] In 1996, the channel was rebranded as Fox Sports Américas, later shortened to Fox Sports in 1999. In 2002, Hicks, Muse, Tate and Furst, a Dallas private equity firm, Liberty Media Corp and News Corp created a holding company (Fox Pan American Sports) to jointly operate FOX Sports Latin America. [4] News Corp owned approximately 38% interest. [5] Liberty later exited leaving HMTF and News Corp as co-owners of the cable network. News Corp purchased the ownership rights from HMTF of FOX Sports en Español and rebranded as FOX Deportes in 2010. News Corp purchased the remaining ownership rights for the holding company from HMTF and fully owned the FOX Sports Latin America cable network in 2011.

Fox Sports logo, used from February to November 2012. Fox Sports logo1.svg
Fox Sports logo, used from February to November 2012.

In 2009, a second feed called Fox Sports+ (FOX Sports Plus) was launched, to allow simultaneous broadcasting of football. In 2010, FOX Sports signed a deal with UFC to be the first cable network to show it in Latin America. FOX Sports also opened a studio in 2010 [6] in Mexico City where it broadcasts original programming and licensed programming. In 2012, the channel was renamed to Fox Sports 2, whereas Speed Channel was rebranded to Fox Sports 3.

On February 21, 2019, Bloomberg reported that Disney had divest the Fox Sports television network from the 21st Century Fox purchase in order to get an approval from the governments of Mexico and Brazil. The division was among the last major hurdles for the Disney-Fox deal. [7]

On May 22, 2021, Disney announced it would sell Fox Sports Mexico to Grupo Multimedia Lauman with the deal being expected to close in 2021, pending regulatory approval. [8] [9] [10] On June 9, 2021, the transaction was approved by the Mexican Federal Telecommunications Institute. [11] [12] [13]

On March 4, 2025, Fox Sports Mexico announced through a statement that it had taken legal action against Fox Corporation and Grupo Pachuca because its alleged right of first refusal to offer to continue broadcasting the home matches of Club León and Club Pachuca in the Liga MX had not been respected, for which reason the channel asked a judge to order that these games remain without official broadcast through the streaming service Tubi (owned by Fox Corp.) until the matter is resolved. [14] [15] However, both Fox Corporation and Grupo Pachuca subsequently responded, clarifying that Grupo Lauman had not paid the corresponding amount for the television rights of both clubs, that Fox Corp.'s negotiation for these rights was therefore legal and that the games would continue to be streamed on Tubi. Furthermore, Fox Corp. indicated that Grupo Lauman's permit to use the Fox brand in Mexico had expired, and that it would therefore have to be phased out (Fox Sports later denied this last point). [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] On March 21, it was reported that Fox Corporation had filed a civil lawsuit against Grupo Lauman in Los Angeles, California, claiming 850 million Mexican pesos (52 million US dollars) because, according to the lawsuit, Fox Corp. was the one who acquired the broadcast rights to the home games of Grupo Pachuca's teams in the Torneo Apertura 2024 and that the Mexican channel had obtained a sublicense to continue airing them during the course of the negotiations that the American company had with Grupo Lauman to acquire Fox Sports Mexico, of which the corresponding payment of MXN 221 million (13 million dollars) would not have been carried out by the Mexican company. [21] [22]

On April 4, 2025, both Tubi and Grupo Pachuca confirmed that the match between Pachuca and América, corresponding to matchday 14 of the Liga MX Clausura 2025, would not be broadcast anywhere following a judge’s order. The decision stemmed from the legal dispute that began in March between Fox, Pachuca, and Lauman. [23] [24] On April 8, Club Pachuca confirmed that its streams would return to Tubi following a favorable ruling from a federal court, and it was reported that Grupo Pachuca had sued Grupo Lauman for damages. [25] [26] [27]

On June 19, 2025, it was confirmed that the company had acquired sports-oriented broadcaster Caliente TV to expand its presence in sports rights—which it already owned via Tubi in Mexico and Central America—through a future multiplatform offering that will include, in addition to Tubi (a free service), a subscription television channel and a SVOD service. [28] [29]

On August 14, 2025, the company filed a lawsuit in the Southern District Court of New York against Media Deportes México, operator of Grupo Lauman’s Fox Sports MX, seeking to bar the use of the “Fox Sports” trademark in Mexico and the United States for 14 days. Fox Corp. argued that the rights to the brand had expired in March 2025 and were subsequently misused. [30] [31] [32]

Feeds

Localised channels

Programming

Fox Sports Mexico broadcasts sports-related programming 24 hours a day in Spanish. The network carries a wide variety of sports events, including soccer (UEFA Europa League, Liga MX etc.), NFL, MLB, UFC, Formula 1 racing and WWE programming. Fox Sports also airs talk shows (NET: Nunca es tarde) as well as other programming including exercise programs.

Sports programming

Football

Motorsport

Other sports

Other programming

Alongside its live sports broadcasts, Fox Sports also airs a variety of sports highlight, talk, and documentary styled shows. These include:

  • Agenda Fox Sports
  • Auto Show TV
  • Cara a Cara
  • Central Fox
  • El Show de la Concacaf Liga Campeones
  • El Show de la NFL en Fox Sports
  • El Show de las Copas
  • Expediente Fútbol
  • Feria de Goles
  • Fox Fight Club
  • Fox Gol
  • Fox Impacto NFL
  • Fox Sports Punto Extra
  • Fox Sports Rádio
  • Fox Sports Rádio Kids
  • Fox Fit
  • Full Tilt Póker
  • Futuras Leyendas
  • Gillette World Sport
  • La Llave del Gol
  • La Última Palabra
  • Lo Mejor de Fox Sports
  • Mobil 1: The Grid
  • NET: Nunca es Tarde
  • Pokerstars.net
  • Tuzoccer (Pachuca Club de Fútbol)
  • WWE Saturday Night

Personalities

See also

References

  1. Brittain, Blake (August 15, 2025). "Fox sues Fox Sports Mexico for trademark infringement". Reuters. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  2. "FOX AND LIBERTY OUTLINE PLANS FOR NEW CABLE VENTURE". Sports Business Journal. Advance Publications. November 1, 1995. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  3. "TCI, LIBERTY AND NEWS CORP. HAMMER OUT SPORTS NET DETAILS". Sports Business Journal. Advance Publications. May 10, 1996.
  4. "Hicks Muse, Fox Sports in Spanish-language sports venture – Dallas Business Journal". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  5. "SEC filing".
  6. "Fox Sports inaugurated new studios in Mexico | Superfights". en.superluchas.com. August 8, 2010. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  7. Lima, Mario; Navarro, Andrea (February 21, 2019). "Disney to Accept Divesting of Fox Sports in Brazil and Mexico". Bloomberg. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  8. Squires, Scott (May 22, 2021). "Grupo Lauman Buys Fox Sports Mexico, Paving Way for Disney Deal". Bloomberg .
  9. "Grupo Lauman set to acquire Fox Sports Mexico". Sports Business. May 25, 2021.
  10. "Grupo Lauman confirma adquisición de Fox Sports México". El Financiero (in Spanish). May 23, 2021.
  11. "¿Quién es Manuel Arroyo, nuevo dueño de Fox Sports?". El Universal (in Spanish).
  12. "IFT aprueba a Grupo Lauman la compra de Fox Sports". El Financero (in Spanish).
  13. "Aprueba IFT transferencia de Fox Sports México a Grupo Lauman". La Jornada (in Spanish).
  14. Staff, Forbes (March 4, 2025). "Fox Sports México anuncia acciones legales contra Fox Corporation y Grupo Pachuca". Forbes México (in Spanish). Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  15. Ledezma, Aram (March 4, 2025). "Fox Sports México demanda a Grupo Pachuca". Diario AS (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved March 5, 2025.
  16. Zúñiga, Israel M. (March 6, 2025). "Desaparece FOX Sports México: Grupo Lauman se queda sin licencia". Marca México (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  17. Arturi, Giorgio (March 7, 2025). "Fox Sports México ratifica uso de la marca por un período de por lo menos cinco años". Forbes México (in Spanish). Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  18. "Fox Sports en peligro: Fox Corporation se separa de Grupo Lauman y le retira la licencia de la marca en México". TVLaint (in Spanish). March 6, 2025. Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  19. Vásquez, Ramiro Pérez (March 7, 2025). "Grupo Pachuca responde a Fox Sports tras acusaciones: 'Son calumnias'". www.record.com.mx (in Spanish). Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  20. "Grupo Pachuca denuncia adeudos de Fox Sports tras demanda de la televisora". www.proceso.com.mx. March 7, 2025. Retrieved March 7, 2025.
  21. "Demanda Fox a Grupo Lauman en EU; reclama 52 mdd". www.reforma.com (in Spanish). March 22, 2025. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
  22. "FOX Corporation demanda a Grupo Lauman en Estados Unidos por incumplimiento de contrato". vanguardia.com.mx. March 22, 2025. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
  23. Vázquez, Christian (April 4, 2025). "León y Pachuca se quedan sin transmisión por demanda de Fox Sports". Sopitas.com (in Spanish). Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  24. Domínguez, Por Alex (April 4, 2025). "¿No será transmitido en México? FOX anuncia que el juego de Pachuca vs América no será transmitido por Tubi". infobae (in European Spanish). Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  25. Carlos Borchardt (April 8, 2025). "Grupo Pachuca confirma el regreso de sus transmisiones a Tubi". El Imparcial. Retrieved April 10, 2025.
  26. "Pachuca y León volverán a ser transmitidos por Tubi y TUDN tras fallo de juez en CDMX". vanguardia.com.mx (in Mexican Spanish). April 9, 2025. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  27. Mediotiempo, Editorial (August 16, 2025). "Juez autorizó que Tubi y TUDN transmitan a Pachuca y León". Mediotiempo (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  28. Zúñiga, Israel M. (June 19, 2025). "Fox Corp adquiere en su totalidad a Caliente TV; te decimos cuándo se estrena Raúl Orvañanos". Marca México (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  29. "Compra Fox a Caliente TV y pasará juegos de 6 equipos". www.reforma.com (in Spanish). Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  30. Brittain, Blake (August 15, 2025). "Fox sues Fox Sports Mexico for trademark infringement". Reuters. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  31. "Fox Corporation consigue medida cautelar en contra de Fox Sports Méxic". Mediotiempo (in Mexican Spanish). August 16, 2025. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  32. Zúñiga, Israel M. (August 15, 2025). "FOX demanda a Grupo Lauman por el uso indebido del nombre de FOX Sports México". Marca México (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved August 16, 2025.