ESPN co-founder Bill Rasmussen dies at 93 in Florida
Why it matters: Rasmussen helped create the first 24-hour sports network, reshaping how Americans watched live games and highlights.
Bill Rasmussen, the co-founder who helped launch ESPN in 1979, died Tuesday at his home in Land O' Lakes, Florida. He was 93. ESPN historian Mike Soltys said Rasmussen died from the effects of Parkinson's disease, which Rasmussen disclosed in 2019 after saying he had been diagnosed in 2014.
Rasmussen and his son, Scott Rasmussen, developed the idea for an around-the-clock sports cable network after Bill Rasmussen lost a public relations job in the World Hockey Association. ESPN went on the air Sept. 7, 1979, with the first "SportsCenter" and a slow-pitch softball game. Though the Rasmussens were pushed out in 1980 by majority owner Getty Oil, the network grew into a dominant force in sports media.