Paul Finebaum isn’t an outlier.
Many of us have threatened to leave the country if the wrong person is elected or the right law isn’t passed. Some people follow through. Most don’t.
I have always liked Paul, both as a broadcaster and as a person, so I will assume he is a man of his word, and he is indeed planning to leave the country following Ole Miss’s elimination from the College Football Playoff.
It would be the start of a whole new life for him and his wife. They would have to make new friends, find a new place to live, and, presumably, both would have to get new jobs. Covering the SEC from Charlotte is one thing. The airport offers direct flights everywhere. Leaving the US entirely, though? That would make things more difficult.
Despite my best efforts, I cannot find a direct flight from any European city to Baton Rouge. So, there’s no way to guarantee that Finebaum would be in Louisiana in time for Lane Kiffin’s first game as the head coach of LSU.
Very few American broadcasters are as good as Paul Finebaum at curating and cultivating the voices of the fans. He has a skill set that would be valuable in sports media across a number of roles.
I first met Paul in 2018, when I wrote a lengthy profile of the SEC Network for my former employer. We have stayed friendly and in touch ever since, so I want to help my friend.
If he is indeed ready to stand on business and leave America behind, here are five places he could go and thrive as part of the sports media.
Canada
Finebaum has spent most of his life in Alabama. He is used to triple-digit temperatures in summer and to the low 90s by late March. His body would surely welcome the cooler temperatures. That’s just biology!
On the job front, Paul Finebaum could take everything he learned and excelled at covering college football and apply it to major junior hockey.
It doesn’t matter what area he chooses, although he may want to go west so that he can really plant a flag in the fertile WHL area. I don’t know if it’s the SEC of major junior hockey, but based on the first rankings that came up when I Googled it, it has the most top-ten teams, so let’s say it is. Wherever he is, regionality will play a big role.
He’s going to find a fan base that wants to talk about playing for the name on the front of the jersey instead of the one on the back of it. He’ll also be able to mine coaches’ characters for content. After all, coaching at the junior and college levels is not just about wins and losses. It’s about molding young men!
Eastern Europe
Paul Finebaum is no stranger to hatin’ ass hate, and if there’s a step up from poisoning your arch rivals’ beloved trees, it’s what goes on when Greece and Turkey meet on the basketball court. That really has become the Mississippi State/Ole Miss of Europe. Neither has a chance to win anything real. They are just happy knowing the other isn’t happy either.
@euroleague Silence is OVER, time to TURN UP the volume! 🔊 #euroleague #crvenazvezda #basketballtiktok ♬ original sound – EuroLeague
EuroBasket features teams from across the continent. In recent years, French and Spanish clubs have dominated, but the old rivalries and passion in the East die hard. After all, much of their hate isn’t about games or great players. It’s about wars from decades or even centuries ago.
Great Britain
There is no shortage of sports talk on the radio and on television in the UK. The Premier League is covered there just like college football and the NFL are here, so while Finebaum may not be a revelation to fans in London or Manchester, he does have a ready-made home.
Are you telling me Finebaum wouldn’t thrive on the AFTV set? If you ever reminisced about the Harvey Updyke story and thought to yourself, “the European mind cannot comprehend,” I hate to tell you, but you’re wrong. The European mind could definitely comprehend a Harvey Updyke, because he is the American version of most of the AFTV staff.
It’s time to GO / it is time / Claude / AFTV pic.twitter.com/FbfN7IcZ6B
— Reaction Memes (@reactionmemes0) November 4, 2024
It doesn’t matter that Paul Finebaum himself isn’t the type who celebrates his rivals’ most devastating injuries. He knows how to work in that environment. Covering Arsenal would feel very familiar, I’m sure.
Italy
Okay, I have to start by acknowledging that I don’t know anything about F1. I don’t want to know anything about F1. It doesn’t matter what the car looks like or how fast it goes. It’s still a car going in a circle. No matter what shape the car or the track is, that’s not for me.
That being said, it’s hard not to work in the sports media world without at least being tangentially familiar with Ferrari’s reputation and struggles. It’s a team with an incredible history that spends a lot to win, and yet doesn’t win.
No one has more titles, but it’s been a long time since its last title, and fans are losing patience.
Paul Finebaum could walk right into the doors of any Italian broadcaster and say, “Let me tell you about the Alabama Crimson Tide,” and both would instantly recognize a kindred spirit.
South Africa
America has baseball and basketball, but football is where we have placed our national identity. South Africa has soccer and cricket, but rugby is where that country’s identity lies.
Looking at South African rugby, Paul Finebaum would see a lot that looks like SEC football. The crowds are huge. Teams have made up their own criteria to claim championships. There is a real “us vs. them” nature to the games, especially when it’s South Africa’s national team playing. If he took calls, I’m sure he would hear from people eager to defend problematic figures and practices of days gone by.
America will be losing a great man, no doubt, but as a great man, I am sure Paul Finebaum will keep his word. Why, he’s probably packing his bags and looking into visa procedures as we speak!
About Demetri Ravanos