Fox hunting is more from England/Wales/Scotland...although it is now illegal over there as they were overhunted. foxes were sought after for their furs and for the sport of it/the social ritual. It was something rich people enjoyed doing to entertain guests. Traditionally packs of dogs were used, which I believe is now one of the main reasons it was outlawed, because of the use of dogs to hunt with, specifically a "pack" of dogs (I think if you just took one dog, it's different?). Furs were removed, carcuses left for the hounds as a reward. They do have hunts that still take place, but they're all registered packs and hunt under the guise of legal fox control or hunting trails - all with very specific rules and regualtions, I'm sure.
Foxes are actually incredicbly difficult to hunt though, from what I've gathered. And it's not practiced very much in the US although there are registered hound packs for the sport. They all have very specific rules for hunting the foxes though.
So, no worries. Foxes won't become extinct any time soon and humans get plenty dirty hunting for other stuff.