In 1978, Bill Rasmussen, his son Scott and Ed Eagan had a radical idea. What if there was a television network that covered nothing but sports all day, every day? The trio founded ESPN, which undeniably changed the sports landscape forever.
Bill Rasmussen died Tuesday, the company announced in a statement. He was 93.
In ESPN’s statement, current chairman Jimmy Pitaro called Rasmussen a “remarkable man.” Pitaro also referred to Rasmussen as a “visionary and an innovator.”
“Bill was a remarkable man – a visionary and an innovator who conceived the idea of a network entirely devoted to sports. Quite simply, none of us would be here today if it wasn’t for Bill’s passion and all the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit he put into building ESPN in the late 1970s – key aspects of our company culture that still carry on to this day.”
Rasmussen, who was born in Chicago, spent time in the Air Force before starting a career in media. After working his way up at television stations in Massachusetts, Rasmussen worked for the New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association. After being fired from that position, he began pursuing the creation of ESPN.
ESPN officially began broadcasting September 7, 1979. It remains a premier and important part of the sports-media landscape today.
Rasmussen “left an active role at ESPN in October 1980,” per the company’s statement. He then worked as a consultant with various media companies.
Years later, Rasmussen was honored by ESPN, which dedicated a plaque on its Bristol campus in his honor.
In 2019, Rasmussen revealed he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. After his diagnosis, he became an “ambassador for Parkinson’s patients through both the American Parkinson Disease Association and The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research,” per ESPN.
Rasmussen earned a number of awards over his media career, per ESPN. He was named to the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame, Rutgers University’s Wall of Fame, was inducted into the Connecticut Sports Museum and Hall of Fame and was named one of the 100 most important people in American Sports History in the book “The Sports 100.”