NFL commissioner Roger Goodell receives a contract extension; Dick Vitale sets his return to broadcasting after health setbacks. Plus: Showtime Sports to shutdown operations; longtime ESPN communications director Chris LaPlaca announces retirement.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell receives contract extension
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has received a contract extension through March 2027, the league announced Wednesday, bringing his tenure to 22 years — behind only Pete Rozelle (30) as the longest in league history.
Goodell will be 67 when his contract expires in 2027, fueling speculation that this will be his final contract with the league. Should this be Goodell’s final contract, the next commissioner would be tasked with negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement when the current agreement expires in 2030. The NFL’s media rights agreements go through 2033, but include an opt-out option in 2030 to coincide with the expiration of the CBA. (NFL PR 10.18)
Dick Vitale announces return date
The longtime ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale said Tuesday that he plans to return to the broadcast booth for the November 28 Miami-Kentucky game as he recovers from the vocal cord cancer he was diagnosed with over the summer.
In a video posted by Tampa Bay Times reporter Joey Knight, Vitale shared that he had not spoken in seven months. He faced three separate cancer diagnoses in the last two years after previously being diagnosed with melanoma and lymphoma in 2021. Long before the recent health scares, Vitale was a staunch proponent of cancer research through his work with the Jimmy V Foundation.
To cap off the positive announcement, Vitale’s doctor shared that he will forego an operation to view Vitale’s vocal cords under a microscope because he sees “no evidence of the cancer whatsoever.” Watch the full video here.
Showtime Sports shuts its doors
Per Sports Business Journal, Paramount Global plans to shut down Showtime Sports at year’s end. During its 38 year history Showtime Sports was a fixture in the sport of boxing, showcasing generational bouts like Tyson-Holyfield and Mayweather-Pacquiao. According to a statement given to SBJ by Paramount, Showtime will continue to fulfill its boxing obligations through the end of this year.
Any future sports content on Showtime will now fall under the purview of CBS Sports — which will likely produce several documentaries for the premium channel in the coming years. It is unknown if Showtime will air any live sporting events following the shutdown of its sports division, but those would also be produced by CBS Sports. (SBJ, 10.17)
ESPN’s Chris LaPlaca to retire
ESPN communications director Chris LaPlaca will retire at the end of this year after 43 years with the company, he announced Tuesday. LaPlaca, who joined ESPN less than a year after its 1979 launch, is the second long-tenured communications executive to leave ESPN this year after Mike Soltys was laid off over the summer. (LaPlaca 10.17)
