Fuel TV (international)
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Television broadcasting |
| Predecessor | Fuel TV weekly regional series on WFLI-TV |
| Founded | September 8, 2001 in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States |
| Founder | Chris Braly |
| Headquarters | Various (international) |
Area served | Portugal, China, North Africa, Middle East, Australia, New Zealand, North America, EMEA region |
| Products | Cable and satellite channel, online streaming platform (fuel.tv), FAST channel |
| Owner | FUEL TV Global, S.A. |
| Website | fuel |
Fuel TV is a digital cable and satellite channel specializing in action sports, owned by FUEL TV Global, S.A. The network emphasizes extreme sports disciplines such as skateboarding, snowboarding, wakeboarding, motocross, surfing, BMX, and FMX. Its broadcast footprint spans various regions including Portugal, China, North Africa, the Middle East, Australia, New Zealand, and North America.
The origins of Fuel TV trace back to September 2001 when video producer Chris Braly launched a weekly regional series focused on music and extreme sports on Chattanooga, Tennessee’s WB affiliate station WFLI-TV.
In July 2003, News Corporation acquired the Fuel TV brand and concept from Braly with the intention of incorporating it into Fox Sports Networks. Relaunched as a cable and satellite channel, Fuel TV featured original programming, exclusive event coverage, licensed films, and innovative interstitial content centered on extreme sports culture.
News Corporation divested Fuel TV in 2007, selling it to the Portuguese firm FLUID Youth Culture, S.A. Initially, the acquisition covered the Portuguese market, with international rights secured by 2014. The channel debuted in Portugal in 2008 through collaboration with telecom operator MEO.
From 2010 through 2014, Fuel TV broadened its reach throughout the EMEA region, launching in over 40 countries and connecting with nearly eight million households.
In August 2013, the U.S. version of Fuel TV was rebranded as Fox Sports 2 following Speed’s transition to Fox Sports 1. Nevertheless, Fuel TV persists internationally as an online streaming platform and FAST channel available on multiple digital services.
Origin
Chris Braly conceived an independently produced television show titled "Fuel TV" in February 2000. As president of BIG Studios and a video producer, Braly utilized a paid programming model on Chattanooga’s WB affiliate WFLI-TV to broadcast Fuel TV as a weekly series on channel 53. The program premiered on September 8, 2001, delivering a combination of music and extreme sports content on Saturday nights at midnight for four seasons.
The show garnered significant popularity among younger demographics amid the early 2000s surge in extreme sports programming across the United States, capturing attention from larger networks.
Fox Sports takeover
With an intent to capitalize on Fuel TV’s increasing audience and enhance coverage of extreme sports, CJ Oliveras from Fox Sports Net negotiated the purchase of the brand and concept from Braly. The final episode under Braly’s production aired on WFLI in September 2003 before Fuel TV transitioned into a dedicated cable and satellite channel within News Corporation’s Fox Network portfolio.
Starting in 2003, Fuel TV broadcast original reality series such as FirstHand, Drive Thru Australia, and Camp Woodward that showcased stories from the extreme sports world. The channel also presented live broadcasts of events like X Games, Supercross 450, and prominently featured Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) content. In 2011, Fuel TV became the official cable broadcaster for UFC under a comprehensive Fox-MMA partnership. By mid-2012, its programming lineup had shifted to focus solely on combat sports including MMA and boxing alongside analysis programs like UFC Tonight and The Undercard, supplemented by reruns from Fox's Speed channel. Additionally, it covered all World Surf League men’s surfing competitions and functioned as an overflow outlet for Fox Sports Australia’s motorsport and extreme sports programming.
By 2013, Fuel TV had evolved away from its initial extreme action sports niche into a mainstream international live-sports network. Its expanded content included coverage of the 2012-13 Premier League season and English Super League rugby league matches.
Transition to streaming
At the beginning of 2013, Fox Network revamped its sports channels to support its expansion objectives: Speed was renamed Fox Sports 1, while Fuel TV took on the new identity of Fox Sports 2. However, the European version of Fuel TV retained its original branding and continues to be available through regional cable and IPTV providers such as Vodafone TV.
Digital platform
With the surge in online streaming during the mid-2010s, Fuel TV introduced "fuel.tv" in early 2014, providing round-the-clock streaming of original reality programming alongside live extreme sports competitions like Cape Fear Surfing and the Free Ride World Championships. The service offers approximately 900 hours of fresh content annually, including around 700 hours of live broadcasts and 200 hours of exclusive material drawn from more than 20 original series, documentaries, talk shows, and branded segments. Additionally, its extensive archive exceeds 5,000 hours of critically acclaimed content catering to fans of action sports and related culture. Subscribers can access Fuel TV + for $4.99 per month, which removes advertisements and allows offline downloads.
Collaboration with 7Plus
Following its split from Fox Network, Fuel TV now functions as an independent entity in over 103 countries, delivering programming in five languages to upwards of 770 million households each year. In November 2019, Fuel TV Australia joined forces with the Seven Network to debut a dedicated 24/7 streaming channel on the 7plus platform, complemented by a specialized programming block on 7mate. As a Free Ad-supported Streaming Television (FAST) channel on Seven’s 7plus, Fuel TV also extends its reach internationally through Plex.
During the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, Seven Network’s coverage emphasized action sports such as skateboarding and surfing, with Fuel TV playing a significant role in distributing these events to Australian audiences. Notably, multiple re-airings of Australian surfer Owen Wright’s bronze medal match were broadcast on Fuel TV, ensuring viewers who missed the live event could still watch.
Original content
Reality television dominated global ratings during the early 2000s, particularly in the United States with popular programs like Big Brother and Survivor. In the 2001–02 primetime season, Survivor achieved a ranking of sixth place, outperforming Monday Night Football. This genre focuses on non-professional actors placed in unscripted environments, attracting viewers interested in genuine experiences. This rise coincided with Fuel TV’s launch, which broke ground by producing original series centered on extreme sports athletes—a cornerstone for its programming lineup.
Firsthand
Firsthand is an original series from Fuel TV that debuted in 2003 on Fox Network’s Fuel TV cable channel. Now entering its thirteenth season, it provides an intimate portrayal of elite action sports competitors’ lives, including their training routines, competition strategies, and everyday activities. Each season consists of between sixteen and eighteen episodes with an average duration of twenty-two minutes. The series has showcased prominent figures such as Owen Wright, an Australian professional surfer and Olympic Gold Medallist; Travis Pastrana, a four-time Rally America Supercross Champion and multiple X Games Gold Medallist; and Ryan Sheckler, an American professional skateboarder ranked fifth in Fox Weekly’s list of "15 Most Influential Skateboarders of All Time."
Camp Woodward
Recognized as a top-tier training center for skateboarding and BMX, Camp Woodward is located in Pennsylvania, US, and attracts elite athletes from around the globe. In 2007, Fuel TV featured a three-month camp through a documentary that highlighted aspiring young talents aiming to impress coaches such as Cody Davis, Hunter Bagent, and Lary Schmidt. Following a break caused by the pandemic, Camp Woodward returned in 2022 for its ninth season, welcoming participants aged 10 to 16 from diverse nations including Argentina and Australia.
Drive Thru Australia
Debuting on March 7, 2009, on Fox Networks Fuel TV, Drive Thru Australia chronicles professional surfers Donavon Frankenreiter, Benji Weatherley, and Pat O'Connell as they traverse Australia's secluded beaches and surf spots. Traveling in a Britz RV from New South Wales to Western Australia, the show received positive audience feedback. The 2010 second season spotlighted surfers Andy Irons, Shane Dorian, and Mark Ochilupo journeying along the East Coast of Australia, capturing off-road adventures in Queensland and surfing scenes along New South Wales’ South Coast. Seasons three through six expanded the series’ scope to include locations in South America, Europe, and New Zealand.
The Adventures of Danny and "The Dingo"
Launching on Fuel TV in early 2008, this reality series features two-time Olympic silver medallist Danny Kass alongside snowboarder Luke "The Dingo" Trembath as they embark on a cross-country quest across the United States to recruit new members for the Grenade team. Incorporating extreme sports such as skydiving, snowboarding, and bungee jumping, the show highlights their energetic personalities and the challenges they face. By its concluding season in 2012, filming extended internationally with shoots across Europe.
PULL
In 2004, Alliance—a US magazine dedicated to wakeboarding and water skiing—introduced Fuel TV's flagship reality series PULL. Initially formatted as a magazine-style program, it brought wakeboarding’s culture, athletes, and lifestyle to a wider audience. Directed by Tony Smith with limited resources, the series followed five Alliance riders—Bob Soven, Jimmy LaRichie, Jeff Langley, Mike Olson, and Pat Panakos—competing at venues worldwide from Milton Sound in New Zealand to Monster Energy Wake Park in Texas for the coveted Triple Crown title. The sixth and final season aired in 2010, establishing PULL as a foundational wakeboarding series on Fuel TV.
Other series
As of March 2024, Fuel TV’s programming slate features:
- Action Sports Plus
- Beyond the Bib
- Breaking Trail
- Bubba's World
- Built to Shred
- Camp James
- Camp Woodward
- Catch Up
- Custom
- Drive Thru Australia
- Fresh Lines
- FirstHand
- Inside the Outdoors
- Microdose
- Pull
- Riding Portugal
- Setups
- Shorebreak
- Snowbound
- Snowchef
- Surfing Life TV
- The Captain and Casey Show
- The Great Ride Open
- The Kickback
- The Moto: Inside the Outdoors
- The Standard Snowboard Show
- Thrillbillies
- Wave Crushers
- Zion's Way
Availability
- Portugal: Accessible via cable, satellite, and IPTV services, Fuel TV broadcasts both national and international action sports competitions including skateboarding, surfing, bodyboarding, and mountain biking—key segments within Portugal’s market.
- Republic of Ireland: Introduced through Vodafone TV on January 20, 2016.