The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) recognised the discipline relatively late in 1990, when it sanctioned the world championships in Durango, Colorado.

In 2006, cross-country mountain biking events became part of the World Deaf Cycling Championships for the first time in San Francisco, USA.

[1] In the United States, there are three USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Calendars: Endurance, Gravity and Ultra-Endurance.

The oldest organised cross-country (XC) racing-like event, however, is believed to take place from Crested Butte to Aspen in Colorado in 1978.

The most plausible, although still speculative reason, was an early resemblance of the racing courses for mountain bikes with the cyclo-cross discipline, with a major difference: the mountain bike racing track was significantly longer (a cyclo-cross course has 2.5–3.5 km versus 4+ km for a XC track) and free of artificial obstacles.

There are also other notable events in some countries, like Crankworx, a week-long event in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada; MTB Himalaya in India; Chupacabras, a race in Juárez, Mexico; The Nedbank Tour de Tuli[usurped] in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Botswana, Cape Epic in South Africa; Sea Otter Classic in the United States; Mountain Mayhem in the United Kingdom; La Ruta de los Conquistadores in Costa Rica and Red Bull Rampage Tour in Virgin, UT.