The Shannon Sharpe-ESPN relationship has been a perfect fit ever since the Hall of Famer joined the network after his falling out with Skip Bayless on FS1’s Undisputed. And now it’s one that is permanent.
After two short term deals that initially saw Sharpe join First Take on Mondays and Tuesdays through the football and basketball seasons, Sharpe finally has a new long-term contract with ESPN.
Last month it was reported by The Athletic that Shannon Sharpe would be signing a four year deal with Bristol and on Tuesday’s edition of First Take, it became official as Sharpe’s new ESPN contract was announced live on the program along with a network press release.
Shannon Sharpe’s new long-term deal with ESPN was officially announced on Tuesday.
Shannon: “Stephen A., I know this moment is not possible without you. As you mentioned to me earlier, you have bosses, but you extended the olive branch and let them know that you wanted me to be… https://t.co/d9i07PhIeg pic.twitter.com/XCrpGm4uIo
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 11, 2024
Sharpe thanked a collection of ESPN and Disney executives including Burke Magnus, Jimmy Pitaro, and Bob Iger. And he shouted out host Molly Qerim and a group of other ESPN personalties that regularly appear on the program with him. But Sharpe saved his most heartfelt thanks for First Take co-star Stephen A. Smith who championed him for a role on First Take at ESPN after his high-profile FS1 departure.
“Stephen A, none of this is possible without you. So I would be remiss if i didn’t thank you and I can’t thank you enough. If I had a thousand tongues I couldn’t thank you enough for what you did for me when I was at my lowest and I didn’t know where I was going to go. You called me and said, ‘Bro everything’s going to be ok, I got you,'” Sharpe said.
While his former program’s ratings have floundered, Sharpe has become an even bigger star at ESPN. Not only has he continued to push First Take to record ratings, but he’s grown his own media empire with his wildly successful Club Shay Shay podcasts.
According to the ESPN announcement, Sharpe will also make other appearances across the network to be announced at a later date beyond his regular First Take appearances. It’s hard to envision him not being part of ESPN’s NFL coverage in some capacity given his success in recent years and his football expertise. But given how successful Shannon Sharpe’s media career has become, he can probably do whatever he wants at the network.
