Los Angeles, CA – February 4, 2015 – The National Pro Grid League (NPGL) has announced that their exclusive partnership with NBC Sports Group will continue for the second season of the world’s first professional coed sport, Grid. Fans will have access to watch more Grid than ever, with coverage expanding in 2015 across NBC Sports Group’s television and digital products. Additional details of the partnership with NBC Sports Group will be announced in the coming weeks.
For Season Two, the NPGL has also announced two expansion teams — the Carolina Crush and Baltimore Anthem — will join the inaugural season teams including: League Champion DC Brawlers, Boston Iron, New York Rhinos, Miami Surge, Phoenix Rise, Los Angeles Reign and San Francisco Fire.
Grid stormed onto the sports scene in 2014, pitting women and men against each other and also pairing them as teammates side-by-side while showcasing how strategy, brute strength, agility and bodyweight skills are all necessary to win Grid matches.
The League features some of the world’s most elite athletes like: Lindsey Valenzuela (Reign), Mat Fraser (free agent), and saw the emergence of new stars like 2014 NPGL Most Valuable Player Taylar Stallings (Brawlers), Danny Nichols (Rise), Sheila Barden (Reign), Nick Urankar (Surge), Sarabeth Phillips (Rhinos) and Irving Hernandez (Rhinos).
“We are thrilled that Grid was able to provide fans with some of the most exciting sports on television and that NBC Sports Group wants to continue our growth into the League’s second season,” said NPGL CEO Jim Kean. “It will be inspiring to watch athletes whose names are well known in Grid, but also to see new stars join the league and wow people everywhere.”
The Anthem burst onto the scene with their first signed player last week, World Champion and Olympic silver medalist weightlifter Dmitry Klokov.
NPGL teams are currently scouting athletes based on the different components of their GridScore™, and also on the profiles they create and how they fit the teams’ needs. Several already have accepted invitations to Pro Days — multi-day events being hosted by the teams across the country starting January 31. A final combine will follow Pro Days, and then the League will host its draft in April.
NBC Sports Group will telecast at least five regular-season Grid League matches on NBCSN, as well as all seven playoffs matches this summer. In addition, NBC will broadcast an encore presentation of the NPGL Championship. All races shown on NBC and NBCSN will be streamed on NBC Sports Live Extra, NBC Sports Group’s live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices and tablets.
ABOUT GRID
Grid is the world’s first professional spectator sport with two co-ed teams racing head-to-head in a two-hour match. It incorporates speed, skill and strategy in a test of endurance through a variety of weightlifting and bodyweight elements. Each two-hour match features two 14-person teams (7 women, 7 men, one of each being over 40 years old) going head-to-head in 11 races. Grid has nine NPGL teams: Los Angeles Reign, New York Rhinos, Boston Iron, DC Brawlers, Phoenix Rise, Miami Surge, San Francisco Fire, Baltimore Anthem and Carolina Crush. Visit NPGL.com for more information, and follow Grid — NPGL on Facebook, @TheGridLeague on Twitter and @GridLeague on Instagram.
NPGL and its partners have been nominated for a prestigious industry award recognizing the interactive and innovative technology created to engage fans with the sport of Grid. Visit the Interaction Awards website for more information. Voting in the People’s Choice Award category continues until February 7.