The Varsity

The Zelig-esque sportscaster joins John on the eve of a new NFL season to discuss why football has a stranglehold on the sports-watching public. Plus he recounts the backstories behind his memorable interviews with George W. Bush, Mike Tyson, Pete Rose, and more. 

Join us at In the Arena on Oct. 1 in NYC. Tickets here: https://puck.events/inthearena/

Industry consultant Marc Ganis, a member of President Trump’s College Sports Council, joins John to break down the bipartisan Senate bill aimed at saving college athletics from itself. The two dig into runaway transfer chaos, the Lakers’ $12.5 billion sale, why the Seahawks fetched over $9 billion, Lachlan Murdoch’s risky bet on NFL media rights, the league’s flag football and international expansion push, and the never-ending saga of the Bears’ stadium search.

Join us at In the Arena on Oct. 1 in NYC. Tickets here: https://puck.events/inthearena/

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand returns to the pod to break down the biggest storylines in sports media ahead of the NFL season. He and John weigh Tony Romo’s odds of returning to CBS’s top booth, Mike Tomlin’s early days in NBC’s studio, and whether Aaron Rodgers could follow the long line of star quarterbacks into broadcasting. They also dig into the NFL’s media rights leverage heading toward 2030, Netflix’s uneven push into live sports, and the economics behind Pat McAfee’s ballooning role at ESPN.

Join us at In the Arena on Oct. 1 in NYC...

Brian Herbst, the executive who negotiated the sport’s media rights deals, joins John to assess a landscape reshaped since he signed them. The two dig into the new Chase playoff format, the surprisingly loyal audience following NASCAR across five networks, Herbst’s beef with Nielsen's methodology, and the sport’s growing bet on original content, including the Days of Thunder sequel.

Join us at In the Arena on Oct. 1 in NYC. Tickets here: https://puck.events/inthearena/

Longtime Sports Illustrated columnist Jimmy Traina joins the pod to discuss why he left the publication after 20-plus years and what to expect from his move to Underscore Media. Jimmy and John also highlight some of the sports media trends they’re monitoring and how they expect the business to evolve.

Join us at In the Arena on Oct. 1 in NYC. Tickets here: https://puck.events/inthearena/

Mark Ein, a veteran investor with stakes in the Commanders, Orioles, and Leeds United, joins John to trace his path from World Team Tennis owner to NFL minority owner. Ein breaks down why franchise valuations keep shattering records (hint: AI wealth), where he sees real risk in sports' media-rights dependency, and what it'll take to make tennis a bigger deal in America.

ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, who broke last week’s big news about the LA Lakers, joins John to walk through how the $12.5 billion deal came together practically overnight. The two dig into the NBA’s exploding franchise valuations, what kind of owner Iger is likely to be, why LeBron James really left for Philly, and the murky, slow-moving investigation into the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard.

John sits down with Guggenheim's Mike Morris to unpack the NFL's media rights maze and outline some worst case scenarios for the Sunday Ticket lawsuit. The pair dig into why the cable bundle still prints money, Netflix's math on Sunday football, and why the NFL's leverage, for all its power, isn't quite as bulletproof as it looks.

NBC Sports’ Mike Florio returns to the pod to preview the upcoming NFL season and the biggest off-field intrigue. He and John dig into the Sunday Ticket legal drama, Tony Romo’s arrest and indefinite CBS Sports suspension, the implications of NFL’s new ownership stake in ESPN, the enduring 18th-game chatter, and much more.

Athletes First executive Gideon Cohen joins John to take the temperature of a broadcasting market undergoing sweeping change alongside the rest of the sports media industry. The duo chew over the slow death of the studio show, Netflix’s new NFL booth, the Tony Romo suspension, and why the future of the business increasingly runs through an iPhone.

Annie Costabile of The Athletic, who covers the WNBA and women’s basketball at large, joins John to discuss the league’s growing pains as it makes the leap from niche product to mainstream juggernaut. Annie explains why, despite record TV ratings, attendance, and sponsorships, the WNBA remains mired in internal conflict—from online harassment to the breakdown in communication between star players and commissioner Cathy Engelbert, whose future in the role is very much in question.

Analyst Michael Nathanson joins John to break down some of the biggest storylines in sports media right now—from the implications of Paramount pausing its Warner Bros. deal to the way the A.I. capex arms race has reshaped how streamers approach sports rights. He also gets into Netflix’s sports strategy, Apple’s sports rights appetite, and more.

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand rejoins John to break down ESPN’s recent layoffs, which hit more than 100 employees. They explain why the NFL Network acquisition—and the massive salaries commanded by the likes of Stephen A. Smith and Pat McAfee—set the stage for the cuts. They also discuss the SEC’s stance on the Protect College Sports Act, streaming’s growing influence over NFL rights, the future of NFL Network under ESPN, and more.

JT Batson, C.E.O. of the U.S. Soccer Federation, joins John to lay out his vision for “the American soccer movement”—a five-year push toward two marquee moments: the 2028 L.A. Olympics and the 2031 Women’s World Cup. Batson makes the case for building the sport at the grade-school level, explains why corporate dollars are suddenly lining up behind soccer, and argues why MLS 3.0’s success is imperative to the sport’s broader rise in America.

The Athletic’s Evan Drellich joins John to discuss MLB’s looming labor war. Evan puts the odds of a 2027 lockout at 100 percent and the chance of missed games at 75—all while baseball is enjoying a banner season with increased ratings, attendance, and sponsorships. They also explore the sport’s real potential to surpass basketball, the challenges facing its next media deal, and more.

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Puck’s legal expert Eriq Gardner joins John to work through a docket’s worth of sports media legal battles—from the looming challenges to the Paramount-WBD merger to the NFL’s ongoing antitrust case. Plus, a long-simmering dispute between the Chicago Cubs and the rooftop owners over sightlines into Wrigley.

Michael Ratner, C.E.O. of Fanatics Studios, and Lance Fensterman, C.E.O. of Fanatics Events, join John to discuss the wild growth and evolution of Fanatics Fest—and why immersive, interactive experiences built around high-profile athlete appearances are central to its appeal. Ratner also gets into the thinking behind a reimagined ESPYs, which he’s overseeing and which should kickstart a major weekend for Fanatics.

Wells Fargo Securities analyst Steven Cahall joins John to cut through the noise on sports media’s biggest storylines: why a sale of NBC is less likely than the market assumes, the fuzzy logic surrounding the $22 billion Fox–Roku deal, whether linear networks can actually afford to pay more for the NFL, and much more.

With Wimbledon in full swing, John is joined by Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim for a wide-ranging conversation on the state of tennis. They get into Serena Williams’ return to the court, the WTA’s player protests over fair wages, and the challenges and opportunities facing the sport in the U.S. Wertheim also illuminates how tennis keeps finding itself at the forefront of women’s sports’ remarkable rise.

C.E.O. Eric Shanks joins John to gush about the World Cup and Fox’s decade-long investment in soccer. He discusses his biggest surprises, Fox’s always-on approach to coverage, Zlatan Ibrahimović’s unlikely TV career, the controversial hydration breaks, the looming 2030 rights war, and more.

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand is back on the pod to discuss the World Cup’s runaway success, from its strong attendance numbers and high TV ratings to its positive impact on social media. He also predicts what the momentum means for the 2030 rights, and whether it could land on a streamer for the first time. Plus, how MLS can capitalize on the moment to become a top league globally.

FanDuel President Christian Genetski joins John to talk shop about World Cup engagement, the sports betting scandals putting the industry under a microscope, and FanDuel’s foray into prediction markets. Genetski addresses the looming transparency and regulation questions head-on, and explains how he’s threading the needle between legal complexities and a consumer appetite that's only intensifying.

NBC Sports’ Nicole Auerbach rejoins The Varsity to gab with John about all the latest chaos in college sports, from a bizarre twist in the Big Ten–SEC rivalry to the ongoing legal drama surrounding Brendan Sorsby and an unexpected political threat in Washington.

Fresh off of the Knicks' historic championship victory, John sits down with ESPN's Brian Windhorst and New York's own Mike Breen to dig into James Dolan's ownership of the team, the undervalued roster Leon Rose quietly assembled, and why Jalen Brunson is essentially funding his own teammates. Breen also expands on his emotional call as the clock hit zero.

John sits down with Axios media correspondent Sara Fischer to discuss the throw down set for next Sunday on the White House lawn. They discuss the press access issues and the potential growth opportunities for the UFC. The pair also chat about the brands flocking to F1's Apple era, and the Murdoch vs. NFL leverage war playing out on Capitol Hill.

Rich Greenfield, the LightShed partner and sports guru, joins John to weigh in on the looming NFL rights renegotiation bonanza: who wins, who blinks first, and why the league still has all the leverage in the post-cord-cutting era.

Puck legal guru Eriq Gardner joins John Ourand to explain how Capitol Hill and a veritable army of lawyers are reshaping college athletics: the fight over the Sports Broadcasting Act, the usual NIL mishegas, the Sunday Ticket time bomb, and much more.

ESPN head of content Burke Magnus joins John to discuss what's working for the network and what's in store. They chat about Inside the NBA, the state of the NBA booth, the NFL Network acquisition, and what it takes to draw younger audiences in through digital and social. They also discuss the MLB.tv experiment, and Magnus reveals what's still on his wish list for the network.

John sits down with Dan Helfrich, COO of US Soccer, ahead of the World Cup. Helfrich makes the case for the US team’s readiness and discusses how this three-nation-hosted tournament is so unique. He also explains why the pipeline to a top-tier MLS starts with youth development, college soccer, and the communities that support them. 

Peter Supino, the Wolfe Research super analyst, joins John to gab about the changing sports media landscape and the insider math behind two of the biggest  rights deals of the decade: Apple’s curious bet on F1, and whether Paramount overpaid for UFC.

The Athletic's Andrew Marchand joins John to discuss Apple’s use of numerous iPhone 17 Pros to produce a live soccer match, and whether iPhone broadcasting could become the norm. They also get into the 2026 World Cup and whether issues like ticket pricing, immigration concerns, and stadium occupancy will significantly impact the event. Finally, they discuss Netflix’s acquisition of the Women's World Cup.

Horizon Media’s Adam Schwartz hops on the pod to discuss the state of the ad sales market with John. They talk about the vitality of the 30 second ad spot, A.I. optimization for commercials during sports broadcasts, social media sponsorships…. and why there’s still nothing that beats the Super Bowl.

UTA Sports chief Jerry Silbowitz joins John to discuss the newly released 2026 NFL schedule, including the league's experimentation with games on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, Saturdays in December, and a whopping nine games abroad. Then they turn to the rise of talent-led IP—like Dave Portnoy's Barstool—and the impact of the creator economy on sports media.

Jason Stein, the sports investor and indefatigable pickleball advocate, joins John to discuss the flow of private equity into sports at all levels, the commercialization of the NCAA, the future of youth sports…. and Apollo’s $225 million investment in Pickleball Inc.

Business Insider’s Peter Kafka joins John for a deep dive into ESPN’s effect on Disney’s bottom line. Kafka explains why Disney chief Josh D’Amaro ultimately decided against spinning ESPN into a separate company and looks into what needs to happen for his position to change. The two also highlight the new creator economy in sports media and handicap what’s likely to happen during the NFL’s media rights negotiations.

Paul Rabil, co-founder of the Premier Lacrosse League, joins John for a candid chat about the challenges of carving out space in today’s overcrowded sports media landscape. They dig into the essential changes the league is implementing this upcoming season, its rights deal with ESPN, and an exciting women’s league launch slated for this year—including the budding superstar Rabil believes could transcend the sport, á la Caitlin Clark. Rabil also looks ahead to LA28 and shares what he’s learned about building a league with genuine staying power.

Joe House and Nathan Hubbard, hosts of The Ringer’s Fairway Rollin podcast, join John to weigh in on LIV Golf’s strategic misfires, from its combative marketing to its Saudi entanglements, which they suggest ultimately undercut the golf startup’s lofty ambitions. They also discuss PGA Tour’s ratings rebounds, the potential return of LIV players to PGA, the future of TGL, and more.

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Guggenheim Securities analyst Mike Morris rejoins the pod to assess how the negotiating table has shifted for the Shield and its media partners over the past few months, YouTube’s deepening relationship with the NFL, Amazon’s football fantasy, and how the league has transformed the sports rights landscape writ large.

This show is brought to you by the Sports Betting Alliance, advocating for
regulated, responsible, and legal online sports betting. Learn more at
sportsbettingalliance.org.