About
The National Surf League is dedicated to the pursuit of surfing excellence, building awareness for the sport of surfing while creating a fun competitive landscape for all types of surfers with it's proprietary team format called "The Game"
History
The National Surf League Inc. was founded in 2001 by pro surfer Brad Gerlach to create a spectator and television friendly format for the sport of surfing. The innovative team challenge called “The Game” debuted in 2002 as the NSL Cup. The NSL selected teams of professional surfers from Orange County and San Diego, launching a revolutionary way for people to think about competitive surfing.
By 2003 the NSL had inked a five-year licensing agreement for “The Game” with ESPN for inclusion in their X Games programming.
In 2004 and 2005 The NSL produced the California Cup consisting of five professional regional teams creating original programming for both ESPN2 and FuelTV
In 2006 the NSL created the High School Cup, which has quickly expanded from 8 schools in 2006 to 32 schools in 2008.
In 2008 The NSL launched the Brazil vs USA Challenge in Maresias, Brazil.
The Game Explained
Modeled after team sports such as Basketball, Football, and Baseball – The Game™ turns an individual sport like surfing into fan-friendly team sport
• Two teams against each other
• One team in the water at a time
• 3 Periods, Timeouts, Coaches, Referees
• Substitutes
• Rivalries
• Entertainment
• Real Surfing
• Game time: under two hours
• A scoreboard, continuous commentary, and scoring updates so the crowd and television audience can easily follow the results.
Quotes
“It wasn’t about winning or losing it was about doing something good for
the sport”
- Current world #1 and nine time World Champion, Kelly Slater
“In normal contests I just surf my heat and leave the beach…with the
Game I’m having a blast and post up at the beach all day!”
- World Runner Up, Pipe Master and Style Guru, Rob Machado
“I wish every contest used this format”
- East Coast superstar surfer, Ben Bourgeois
“This format is the future of the sport”
- REEF co-founder and International Surfing Association President, Fernando Aguerre
“Guys like Brad Gerlach and his format the Game are the risk takers the
surf industry needs to grow the pond”
- Chairman and CEO of Quiksilver, Inc., Bob McKnight
Contact
For general inquiries and information on licensing The Game™ format
Phone: +1.310.243.6717
Mailing Address:
2711 N Sepulveda Blvd. #317
Manhattan Beach, CA. 90266
