Rich Eisen discusses the prospect of a return to “SportsCenter”; Pat McAfee issues a public apology; and NFL national revenue sharing continues to rise. Plus additional news about Max Starks, The CW, Kentucky Oaks and Bill Belichick.
Rich Eisen says doing ‘SportsCenter’ at ESPN is ‘to be determined’
Former SportsCenter anchor Rich Eisen, who will be bringing his eponymous daily show to ESPN Radio in September, said on “The Dan Patrick Show” this week that it is still “to be determined” whether his new ESPN deal will include anchoring “SportsCenter.” Eisen served as a “SportsCenter” anchor from 1996-2003 before leaving ESPN for NFL Network.
Eisen will be hosting a new SportsCenter-focused podcast, which he revealed during the interview is going to be titled “This Was SportsCenter.” The show is slated to feature some of his former colleagues from his previous seven-year stint with the network and will be part of The Rich Eisen Podcast Network, which is also coming to ESPN platforms under the new agreement.
Pat McAfee publicly apologizes to Mary Kate Cornett and her family
Pat McAfee issued a public apology to Mary Kate Cornett and her family at the end of Wednesday’s edition of his program on ESPN. During a February edition of the show, McAfee amplified a false internet rumor about the undergraduate student. At the time, Cornett denied the allegations and accused McAfee, Barstool Sports host Kevin Clancy and former NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown of defamation.
McAfee explained that his team “had no personal knowledge” of Cornett, instead going off what was posted online and failing to verify any of the facts. Although he mentioned the situation at his program’s “Big Night Aht” event this past April and pledged to try and “make some sort of silver lining in a very terrible situation,” the issue had not been mentioned on his show ahead of Wednesday. McAfee revealed that he wanted to speak with the family before discussing it on the public forum, and he explained that he met them and apologized in person.
“I deeply regret the pain that was caused,” McAfee said. “I hated watching what our show was a part of in her interviews and reading about it, and my hope is that this can be something that we all learn from going forward. I know we certainly have. Our goal with this show is to make the world a happier place, a better place, to celebrate life and sports and to unify folks. I and we don’t always get it right, but we’ll never stop trying.”
McAfee is entering his third football season hosting “The Pat McAfee Show” on ESPN and has also been serving as an analyst on weekly editions of “College GameDay.” ESPN reached a licensing agreement with the former NFL punter in 2023 under which it airs 235 episodes a year of the show in the afternoons. Starting in the fall, McAfee and his program will be airing on ESPN platforms simultaneously with “The Rich Eisen Show” on ESPN Radio, Disney+ and ESPN+, plus a Stephen A. Smith-hosted show on SiriusXM Mad Dog Sports Radio.
NFL National Revenue Sharing Rises 7.5% YoY
The publicly-owned Green Bay Packers, the only NFL organization required to divulge its financial statement annually, disclosed national revenue sharing of $432.6 million in is annual report this week — indicating a 7.5% increase from the previous year. The remuneration is primarily attributed to the NFL national television contracts that combined are reportedly worth more than $10 billion per season. All 32 NFL teams received the same national revenue sharing payment, indicating a total of $13.84 billion generated in this category during the fiscal year.
“That’s mostly the growth in the national TV deals,” Mark Murphy, president of the Green Bay Packers, said regarding the financial results. “The league has it so they’re trying to grow at about a 7% growth rate annually. And then the other thing I think the league’s done a good job of is moving more towards streaming, but still a vast majority of our national revenue is coming from broadcast television.”
The NFL continues to invest in the streaming domain with several exclusive game presentations airing on multiple platforms throughout the year. YouTube will be showcasing its first exclusive NFL game in Week 1 when the Los Angeles Chargers face the defending AFC champion Kansas City Chiefs from Corinthians Arena in São Paulo, Brazil. In addition, Amazon’s Prime Video is airing 17 NFL games throughout the year, primarily on Thursday nights, and Netflix is presenting a Christmas Day doubleheader for the second consecutive year.
“I continue to be amazed by the popularity of the NFL and the league office’s ability to generate revenue,” Murphy said. “It’s impressive. A big part of it obviously is TV. How people watch TV is changing dramatically. NFL games and athletics or sports in general are the few things people watch live anymore.”
Plus: Max Starks, The CW, Kentucky Oaks, Bill Belichick
- Former Pittsburgh Steelers lineman Max Starks has been named a color commentator for live game broadcasts starting this season, iHeartMedia Pittsburgh announced this week. Starks previously served as a sideline analyst for the Steelers Audio Network since 2021, and he will continue working with play-by-play host Rob King and reporter Missi Matthews.
- The CW Network has signed a multiyear deal with Professional Bull Riders under which it will exclusively present weekend PBR Camping World Team Series events. Broadcasts of PBR airing on The CW commence on Saturday, Aug. 9 and run through Sunday, Oct. 26.
- NBC Sports is presenting the Kentucky Oaks on prime time television for the first time in its history. The race will air on Friday, May 1 live from Churchill Downs at 8 p.m. EST on NBC and Peacock ahead of the Kentucky Derby the next day.
- ESPN networks will be televising “8, if not 10,” of Bill Belichick‘s first games serving as University of North Carolina Tar Heels head football coach, according to a report by Michael McCarthy and David Rumsey of Front Office Sports. Belichick, who appeared on various football studio programs last season on ESPN and The CW, makes his debut coaching the team on Monday, Sept. 1 at 8 p.m. EST on ESPN.
