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Invention
SlamBall was invented in 1999 by Mason Gordon, who was working for Tollin/Robbins Productions.
SlamBall´s name is owned by Gordon's company.
Gordon vas inspired by video games, he sketched an idea on a napkin for a sport that combined several existing ones (american football, basket and gymnastics).
He showed his boss, Mike Tollin, who liked the idea. Tollin helped finance the construction of a prototype court in an East Los Angeles warehouse six months later. -
First players and teams
Five players that were: James Willis, Sean Jackson, David Redmond, Michael Goldman and Jeff Sheridan trained with Gordon to produce the first games.
These six players were part of the first two teams, the Los Angeles Rumble and the Chicago Mob. These two teams played an exhibition series in 2001, which the Chicago Mob won. Then, more players were chosen, including Stan Fletcher, Rob Wilson and Dion Mays. -
First debut in television
SlamBall made its television debut, on The National Network (later Spike TV and now the Paramount Network), soon after former Pat Croce had signed on as a partner. -
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The disolution
The league disbanded following the 2003 season due to a disagreement between Gordon and the network partner.
Slamball, being a very violent game, gradually lost popularity in the United States until it finally disappeared.
It returned in 2008 but it stood only for one season. -
Slamball in Italy
In Italy SlamBall made its debut on Italia for the first time the 16 July 2007 -
Slamball in China
SlamBall resurfaced in China, with the fourth series taking place in Hangzhou, and the formation of the Multinational SlamBall Athletic Association (MSAA) to scout and develop players from China.
The power of social media will be crucial for SlamBall’s potential success. -
2023 league
The 2023 SlamBall Season would take place in Las Vegas for a six-week season.
On June 5, SlamBall Mini Camp officially started with the "Super 24", where 24 selected groups of multi-sport athletes trained for two weeks, leading up to the SlamBall Draft where the eight teams would draft 56 players. -
Exclusice broadcast
On June 21 (2023), SlamBall and ESPN announced an exclusive two-year broadcast partnership to have over 30 hours of games on ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN+.