Matthew Berry is the single most recognizable and longstanding fantasy football analyst in sports media. In a recent interview, he revealed his key to success is relatability.
Speaking with Barrett Sports Media about his approach to podcasting, Berry explained that he developed a loyal audience by mastering the art of “being Matthew Berry.” So much so that an internal ESPN study once found its audience saw Berry as the talent that listeners and viewers would most want to have a beer with.
“I’m not privy to the results other than what they told me, which was that that I scored the highest of any ESPN personality at the time as the guy you’d most like to have a beer with,” Berry explained. “I took that as a massive compliment, because, by the way, I think I am pretty fun to have a beer with. But I’m very much like, ‘This is sort of who I am.'”
Berry crafted both The Fantasy Show for ESPN and Fantasy Football Happy Hour for NBC in that spirit. The studio for the NBC show is literally modeled after a bar and sponsored by Applebee’s.
Berry believes that energy also helped him maintain an audience after leaving ESPN.
“What I am really good at is being Matthew Berry, so I’m just going to focus on being Matthew Berry,” he told BSM. “The people that dig it will come along for the ride. The people that don’t, you know what? There’s lots of great options out there for them.”
