Fox Sports & Entertainment
Product brand
UnclaimedFox Sports & Entertainment was a Japanese sports and general-entertainment television channel that operated from 2011 until 2020.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Fox Sports & Entertainment was a Japanese television channel focused on live sports, sports-related programming, and selected general-entertainment and lifestyle content. It began broadcasting on 1 October 2011 under the name Fox BS238 and was principally distributed through Japan's broadcast-satellite television platform, while also becoming available through other multichannel television services. The channel was operated by BS-Fox, a subsidiary of Fox Networks Group Japan, and formed part of the wider Fox-branded pay-television presence in the Japanese market. The channel's programming strategy combined domestic Japanese sports with international rights. A major domestic offering was live coverage of home games played by the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball. Earlier in its history, the channel also carried games involving the Chiba Lotte Marines and Orix Buffaloes, although those arrangements ended after the 2014 season. International football was another central pillar. Depending on rights availability, the service carried competitions including the English Premier League, the FA Cup, Germany's Bundesliga, the Netherlands' Eredivisie, and Argentina's Primera División. Its sports portfolio also included UFC programming and the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup. Alongside these events, Fox Sports & Entertainment broadcast entertainment and lifestyle shows, allowing it to function as a broader general-interest channel rather than a narrowly specialized sports network. The brand adopted the name Fox Sports & Entertainment on 1 February 2014. The renaming aligned the Japanese service more closely with the Fox Sports identity while retaining its broader entertainment remit. Production and supply of sports coverage initially involved Fox Sports Japan Inc., a joint venture between TV Bank, a SoftBank subsidiary, and the Japanese Fox-related operating company then known as FIC Japan. In December 2014, the parties announced that the joint venture would be wound up and that FIC Japan would thereafter take responsibility for producing sports-event coverage for the channel. This represented an operational change in the supply of programming rather than the creation of a new channel. The channel's later history was shaped by corporate restructuring in the international Fox business. Disney's acquisition of 21st Century Fox led to a reorganization affecting Fox's Japanese television operations. Fox Sports & Entertainment ultimately ceased broadcasting on 31 March 2020. Its closure ended a Japanese channel brand that had combined domestic baseball, international football, combat sports, winter sports, entertainment, and lifestyle programming within a subscription-television environment. No continuing operating business under the Fox Sports & Entertainment name is identified in the supplied reference material.
History
Fox Sports & Entertainment was a Japanese television channel operated by BS-Fox, a subsidiary of Fox Networks Group Japan. It entered the market on 1 October 2011 as Fox BS238. The initial service was primarily associated with Japan's broadcast-satellite television platform, commonly referred to as the BS platform, but distribution subsequently extended to other multichannel television operators. The channel was designed as a combined sports and general-entertainment service. Its sports schedule included domestic baseball and a range of international rights. It carried home games of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in Nippon Professional Baseball. During an earlier period it also broadcast games involving the Chiba Lotte Marines and Orix Buffaloes; those two team relationships did not continue beyond the 2014 season. International football formed a substantial part of the offering, with programming connected to the English Premier League, FA Cup, German Bundesliga, Dutch Eredivisie, and Argentine Primera División. The channel also showed UFC content and events from the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup. Entertainment and lifestyle programming supplemented the live and recorded sports schedule. On 1 February 2014, the service changed its name from Fox BS238 to Fox Sports & Entertainment. The new identity emphasized sports while preserving the channel's wider programming scope. Sports-event coverage was supplied in part through Fox Sports Japan Inc., a joint venture involving TV Bank, a SoftBank subsidiary, and the Fox-related Japanese company then known as FIC Japan. In December 2014, it was announced that this joint venture would be wound up. FIC Japan was expected to take responsibility for producing sports-event coverage thereafter, changing the channel's production structure without changing its basic brand proposition. The service operated during a period of major transformation in the international Fox television business. Disney's acquisition of 21st Century Fox resulted in a reorganization affecting the relevant Fox operations, including the Japanese channel portfolio. Fox Sports & Entertainment ultimately stopped broadcasting on 31 March 2020. The closure marked the end of a channel that had brought together Japanese professional baseball, major European and South American football competitions, combat sports, alpine skiing, and non-sports programming for viewers in Japan. The available reference material does not identify a successor operating under the same name, nor does it provide evidence of a continuing standalone brand after the closure.
- 2020
Channel closure
[1]Fox Sports & Entertainment ended broadcasting on 31 March 2020 amid restructuring associated with Disney's acquisition of 21st Century Fox.
- 2014
Rebranding as Fox Sports & Entertainment
[1]The service adopted the Fox Sports & Entertainment name on 1 February 2014.
- 2014
Fox Sports Japan production arrangement changed
[1]In December 2014, the winding up of Fox Sports Japan Inc. was announced, with FIC Japan subsequently taking responsibility for producing sports-event coverage.
- 2011
Launch as Fox BS238
[1]The channel began broadcasting in Japan on 1 October 2011, initially using the Fox BS238 name.
Products and positioning
A Japanese pay-television channel combining live domestic and international sports with general entertainment and lifestyle programming.
Sports and general-entertainment television · 2011
Fox Sports & Entertainment television channel
The channel's core offering was a Japanese pay-television schedule combining live sports and sports-related programming with entertainment and lifestyle shows. Its sports mix included Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks baseball, selected football competitions from Europe and Argentina, UFC programming, and the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup. The service was first launched as Fox BS238 and later operated under the Fox Sports & Entertainment name until its closure in March 2020.
Brand decisions
2020
Decision to close the channelOtherBackground
The acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney led to a reorganization affecting Fox's television operations.
Action taken
Fox Sports & Entertainment ceased broadcasting on 31 March 2020.
Aftermath
The Japanese channel brand became defunct; the supplied sources do not identify a continuing service under the same name.
2014
Rebrand from Fox BS238 to Fox Sports & EntertainmentOtherBackground
The channel had launched in 2011 as Fox BS238 and carried both sports and broader entertainment programming.
Action taken
It adopted the Fox Sports & Entertainment name on 1 February 2014.
Aftermath
The new name continued to signal a sports-led service while retaining the channel's entertainment remit.
2014
Reorganization of sports-coverage productionStrategyBackground
Fox Sports Japan Inc., a joint venture between TV Bank and the Fox-related Japanese operating company, had supplied televised sports coverage.
Action taken
In December 2014, the winding up of the joint venture was announced, with FIC Japan set to oversee production of sports-event coverage.
Aftermath
Production responsibility shifted to the Fox-related Japanese operation, while the channel continued to carry sports programming.
Sources2 sources
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