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🎤 QUICK START ✍️

🏈 Apparently Nick Saban wasn’t the only ESPN employee counseling Lane Kiffin with Ryan Clark also actively recruiting him to take the LSU job.

📺 After a years long bankruptcy saga, the RSNs fate are hanging in the balance once again as DAZN weighs a takeover.

✍️ Longtime sports media writer Richard Deitsch announced that he is leaving The Athletic for new ventures in 2026.

📺 Sporting events were responsible for 96 of the Top 100 most-watched programs in 2025.

💰 An ESPN researcher won a $1 million DraftKings fantasy football jackpot.

🚨LEADING OFF 🚨

The top sports media stories of 2025

For one final look back at the year that was in sports media, it’s time to take a look at the stories that defined 2025 in the industry.

While the top story of the year in the Awfulies was the evolution of ESPN including their DTC launch and deals with the NFL and WWE, there was plenty that happened throughout the entire sports media universe that will help set the foundation for many years to come.

Here are just some of those stories that defined the last twelve months in chronological order.

The Fox Sports lawsuit - The industry was shook by a bombshell lawsuit at Fox Sports that mentioned everyone from Joy Taylor to Skip Bayless. It was stunning, salacious, and shocking. Multiple employees came forward with allegations of sexual misconduct and it ended with longtime executive Charlie Dixon being fired from the company and many of the people named in the suit no longer at the network.

Venu Sports shut down - The evolution of ESPN with their DTC launch and NFL equity deal would not look the same if it wasn’t for the sudden end to their joint streamer with Fox and WBD, the ill fated Venu Sports. After encountering a significant legal challenge from Fubo, the media giants decided to pull the plug in January.

Mary Kate Cornett - The saga of an Ole Miss student plagued by sordid social media rumors made its way to mainstream sports media with Pat McAfee and Dave Portnoy fanning the flames in a story that showed the risks of operating in a world without any editorial guardrails.

Stephen A. Smith cashes in - The polarizing personality re-signed with ESPN in a nine figure deal after months of drama around his future. SAS got everything he wanted and more in the deal as he continues at ESPN while building his own personal empire from radio to politics to podcasting and everywhere in between.

Shannon Sharpe meltdown - The Hall of Fame tight end was on top of the world after winning the Undisputed divorce with Skip Bayless and starring on First Take. But a sexual assault lawsuit and his controversial handling of it led to ESPN cutting ties with him.

ESPN cancels Around the Horn - It’s not every day that a show that’s been on the air for 20 years says goodbye. But for reasons that we’ve never quite understood, ESPN decided it was time to stop going Around the Horn in May. A permanent replacement at 5 p.m. ET has yet to be named.

Barstool joins forces with Fox Sports - Who ever thought we would live to see the day when Barstool Sports fully entered the mainstream? Although the FS1 daily show has been a ratings ghost town, Dave Portnoy’s presence on Big Noon Kickoff helped bring Barstool to a brand new audience.

Paramount lands UFC - It was long thought that the UFC would split their rights deals when the time came to renegotiate. Instead, Paramount made them an offer they simply could not refuse for the whole package. And with the company now owned by the billionaire Ellison family and backed by the Trump administration, it’s not done reshaping sports, news, and media just yet.

Mark Sanchez arrest - In one of the most truly bizarre stories in sports media history, Fox NFL analyst Mark Sanchez was stabbed in Indianapolis while in the city to cover a game. However, after initial reports assumed he was a victim, it turned out he was allegedly the aggressor in a confrontation with a truck driver. Sanchez was hospitalized, arrested, and ultimately fired by Fox.

New NBA golden age? - The new NBA rights deals with ESPN, NBC, and Amazon have been a smash hit with ratings up significantly. The NBA on NBC is back, Inside the NBA is saved, and fans are feeling as good as they have in a long time about the TV product.

MLB’s suicide squeeze - When MLB and ESPN opted out of their rights deal, it looked like all hope was lost. But MLB turned it around to not only save their relationship with the WorldWide Leader, but also partnered with NBC and Netflix. But while it sounded like a home run, there’s much more to the story.

ESPN vs YouTube TV - Sports fans were hit with one of the longest and most painful carriage disputes in recent memory when ESPN and YouTube TV battled it out for multiple weeks in the middle of football season. Ultimately, a good deal was struck for all sides but not before major damage was done.

📣 SOCIAL EXPERIMENT 🌟

John Calipari dedicated almost his entire postgame press conference to the chaotic state of college athletics.

Festus Ezeli may have set the definitive fashion trend of 2026 with one of the more unique looks we have ever seen.

Joel Klatt shared some uncomfortable truths about Notre Dame’s relationship with the rest of college football.

🗣️ NOTABLE QUOTABLES 🗣️

“With a week left in the regular season, I’m feeling more comfortable than ever and I’ve grown in ways that I didn’t think were possible." - Tom Brady is feeling good in the Fox broadcast booth, and it shows.

"Maybe we did a lot of different stories other shows on the network weren't doing. I believe that would be a strength of our show and of the network." - Tony Reali looked back on what made Around the Horn stand out at ESPN.

“To play on a day where everybody’s watching, it’s incredible. All of those things are great. But two things can be true at once: playing on Christmas Day also f*cking sucks.” - Draymond Green sounds like he’s over playing on Christmas with the Warriors.

️‍️‍🔥 THE CLOSER 🔥

Sports Media Ones to Watch in 2026

With 2026 upon us, it’s time to look ahead at the year to come in sports media. It promises to be a huge year with an Olympics, a World Cup, and a full calendar of all of the annual sports we know and love.

While we have made our predictions for some of the big stories that we see unfolding in the new year, what about the people who will come to define the next twelve months in the industry? The Ones to Watch for 2026 may not be all of the biggest names, but they are the ones who may have the biggest year to come in many different ways.

So here are ten names that we will be keeping our eyes on in the new year.

Peter Schrager - The NFL insider, analyst, and personality hit the ground running at ESPN and is already a star across a number of platforms. If he gets the 5 p.m. ET daily show and not Scott Van Pelt, the sky could be the limit for him in Bristol.

Drew Brees - The television return of future Hall of Famer Drew Brees has gone much smoother than his debut year with NBC Sports. As a midseason replacement for Mark Sanchez, Brees has fit seamlessly alongside Adam Amin and shown much more comfort and depth than his first season as a game analyst.

Rebecca Lowe - The English Premier League host has been a fan favorite for a long time. But this year she has the unique honor of hosting both the Olympics and the World Cup on American television, which is a remarkable achievement.

Tim Legler - The longtime NBA analyst will take centerstage this summer when he joins the NBA Finals broadcast booth for the first time. How will he gel with Mike Breen and Richard Jefferson and will he make us forget all about ESPN’s revolving door in recent years?

Shae Cornette - Replacing Molly Qerim after a decade as the host of ESPN’s most popular morning show is no small task. So far, it’s been a seamless transition and hopefully that continues in 2026.

Pablo Torre - It feels a bit lazy to put the reigning Sports Media Person of the Year on this list. But is there anyone else who fits the definition of “one to watch” more than Pablo Torre? Each podcast release holds something special and now expectations are high that he can match or surpass his Jordon Hudson and Kawhi Leonard scoops from 2025.

Christine Williamson - With Elle Duncan moving to Netflix, the SportsCenter anchor got the call to anchor both the 6 p.m. ET SportsCenter and the women’s basketball studio coverage. Can she duplicate Duncan’s chemistry with Andraya Carter and Chiney Ogwumike in what was widely acclaimed coverage?

Josh Pate - Nobody had a more meteoric rise in 2025 than the college football podcaster. Now an ESPN contributor, will we see more of him on national television as a leading college football voice in 2026?

Michael Grady - Speaking of rising stars, Timberwolves announcer Michael Grady now works for both NBC and Amazon in national coverage. It’s not out of the question to see him potentially calling the NBA Finals one day.

Travis Kelce - If the Chiefs tight end, podcaster, and fiancé of Taylor Swift does decide to retire, every network, streamer, and media company in the country will be at his door to recruit him to their platform. The odds of seeing a KelceCast in 2026 have to at least be even money, right?