RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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SportsMoney How X Games League Changed The Way Athletes Compete By Michelle Bruton ,
Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Michelle Bruton covers action sports and the Olympics and Paralympics. Follow Author Aug 03, 2026, 03:56pm EDT Aug 03, 2026, 04:44pm EDT --:-- / --:-- This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . For nearly three decades, athletes have competed at X Games seeking individual glory. Action sports, by their nature, are a solitary, not a team, pursuit—though there have been notable exceptions over the years, such as Tony Hawk and Andy Macdonald’s vert doubles dominance of the ’90s and early aughts.
However, in 2026, the launch of X Games League reimagined what action sports competition could look like. Under this new structure, 40 skateboarding and BMX athletes were drafted onto four teams of 10. The clubs—XC New York, XC São Paulo, XC Tokyo and XC Los Angeles for the summer season, with winter clubs to be announced—have ownership structures, jerseys and salaries, components found in any sports league.
The first season of league competition featured three stops: Sacramento , Chiba and the championship in New Orleans, all happening in the span of 30 days from late June to late July.
Each stop resembled the standalone X Games events of the past, in which athletes competed for individual medals. Undrafted athletes as well as athletes in non-league disciplines (namely, Moto X) were still in the mix for podium spots—and many of them did land there, sending a message to the club general managers who did not draft them.
But during XGL’s inaugural summer season, athletes also racked up points for their teams. These points would eventually see one team crowned league champion at the final event in New Orleans July 24–26.
As the season came to a close, many athletes found that the biggest surprise wasn't the format itself—it was how quickly they embraced competing for something bigger than themselves. Nowhere was that more evident than with the inaugural champions, XC New York.
Over the three events, New York emerged as a powerhouse, matching XC Tokyo stride for stride in the standings while producing standout performances across multiple disciplines. The roster featured established veterans alongside rising stars.
For athletes accustomed to spending events focused solely on their own contests, the experience of cheering on their teammates became an entirely new part of the job. Daniel Sandoval experienced that shift firsthand when XC New York’s season fell on his shoulders in the final event of the championship, Men’s BMX Park.
“It was a collective of things with the team. Everyone did their part, every point mattered and everything came down to the wire,” Sandoval said.
Sandoval’s bronze medal in BMX Park Best Trick in Sacramento was only one contribution to XC New York’s season.
Olympic silver medalist and BMX athlete Hannah Roberts entered the season as one of the faces of the new league, having been drafted 12th overall by XC New York general manager Steve Rodriguez. While her own performances remained among the sport’s elite—including silver medals in Sacramento and Chiba despite competing through a shoulder injury—the team environment added another dimension to her competition.
Roberts’ experience reflected one of the season’s recurring themes. Athletes who had spent years battling each other for podium positions suddenly found themselves celebrating each other’s success. Riders who normally competed in different disciplines became invested in events they had never before followed closely because every medal mattered to their club.
The effect was especially visible throughout the season as athletes gathered in team areas, celebrated podium finishes together and tracked the overall standings from contest to contest.
For XC New York, those contributions came from every corner of the roster.
No. 1 draft pick Chloe Covell captured gold in Women’s Skateboard Street in Chiba and consistently delivered crucial points. Ginwoo Onodera emerged as one of the breakout stars of the inaugural season with consecutive street victories in Sacramento and Chiba. Logan Martin piled up podium finishes across multiple BMX disciplines while leading XC New York in season points. Veterans like Nyjah Huston and rising stars Paige Heyn and Momiji Nishiya added key finishes that kept New York in the championship race from opening weekend through the finale.
The season demonstrated that while action sports remain deeply individual once the competition begins, the moments before and after each run can be transformed by having teammates to celebrate with. That sense of shared investment extended beyond medals. Athletes found themselves following disciplines outside their own, cheering from the sidelines, discussing strategy between events and experiencing victories—and disappointments—as a group.
Martin was in the running for the XGL MVP award after he earned five medals in six starts across Sacramento and Chiba. However, he took a heavy fall at BMX Park practice in New Orleans, dislocating bones in his hand and receiving six stitches for a slam on his chin that also broke multiple teeth. Disappointed to have to bow out in the championship, Martin said, “I’ve seen the inside of too many hospitals this year.”
But just because Martin was out of commission didn’t mean his team was.
Before XGL, a competition-ending injury like that might have meant heading home early. But Martin’s teammates Roberts and Sandoval still had chances to earn XC New York crucial points on the final day of competition.
Both were also seriously injured. Roberts fractured her fibula and torn ligaments in her right ankle after falling awkwardly in practice, while Sandoval was dealing with a fractured kneecap and ribs as well as a wrist injury.
Martin became a sideline coach and cheerleader, helping Roberts and Sando...
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