Stephen A. Smith, ESPN agree to 5 year, $100M contract; Smith will remain a fixture on his show ‘First Take’, but will be less omnipresent on the rest of the network, giving him more time to talk about politics
Content of article: Stephen A. Smith has agreed to a new contract with ESPN worth at least $100 million for five years, an agreement that will result in Smith continuing to star on “First Take” on ESPN while scaling back some of his other required appearances on the network, which would free him up to talk even more about politics, sources briefed on the agreement told *The Athletic.*
>Smith will remain a fixture on “First Take,” his daily morning flagship show on ESPN, but will be less omnipresent on the rest of the network, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the terms of the agreement were not expected to be announced publicly. Smith will not be a regular on ESPN’s premiere NBA pregame show anymore, though he could still make occasional appearances on top basketball studio programs, as well as the “Monday Night Football” pregame or during other big time events.
>*ESPN declined to comment.*
>Smith has been a fixture on ESPN’s top NBA pregame show, “Countdown,” which precedes The Finals. ESPN has signed a licensing agreement with TNT for the Charles Barkley-led “Inside The NBA.” Smith was supportive of the move
>The freedom figures to allow Smith to make even more appearances on other platforms to talk politics, and it also gives him the chance to earn more money outside of ESPN.
>Smith, 57, has been very vocal about political figures and the issues of the day to the point that he is now mentioned as a potential presidential candidate. He has regularly made appearances on other shows, including an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News, and on “The Stephen A. Smith Show” talks broadly beyond sports about issues that are in the news.
>He has talked about the possibility of running for president, but has downplayed the idea that he would actually campaign as he has said he enjoys his life.
>If he were to somehow run for the Democratic nomination in 2028, he would likely only be able to fulfill part of his contract with ESPN. Smith previously made $12 million per year with the network.
HistoricalMix400 on
Looks like he isn’t running
GhostTheHunter64 on
> giving him more time to talk about politics
And by that, they mean whining about trans athletes.
EDIT: smith fans mad that his transphobic ass isn’t running
TheloniousMonk15 on
Good keep his Candace Owens loving ass the fuck away from the Dem primary.
ariveklul on
From the very limited amount of stuff I’ve seen, Stephen A Smith seems a bit overrated
If he’s politically useful great, but it feels like people on our side are desperately trying to find someone to latch onto when the talent isn’t there yet
Collapseofdusk on
Smith bros join the polis bros, who else will fall before midterms?
Real talk who thinks the trade of having someone with no political experience to clean up trumps mess is worth it for name recognition and vibes? The candidate has to have both in my opinion.
7 Comments
Content of article: Stephen A. Smith has agreed to a new contract with ESPN worth at least $100 million for five years, an agreement that will result in Smith continuing to star on “First Take” on ESPN while scaling back some of his other required appearances on the network, which would free him up to talk even more about politics, sources briefed on the agreement told *The Athletic.*
>Smith will remain a fixture on “First Take,” his daily morning flagship show on ESPN, but will be less omnipresent on the rest of the network, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the terms of the agreement were not expected to be announced publicly. Smith will not be a regular on ESPN’s premiere NBA pregame show anymore, though he could still make occasional appearances on top basketball studio programs, as well as the “Monday Night Football” pregame or during other big time events.
>*ESPN declined to comment.*
>Smith has been a fixture on ESPN’s top NBA pregame show, “Countdown,” which precedes The Finals. ESPN has signed a licensing agreement with TNT for the Charles Barkley-led “Inside The NBA.” Smith was supportive of the move
>The freedom figures to allow Smith to make even more appearances on other platforms to talk politics, and it also gives him the chance to earn more money outside of ESPN.
>Smith, 57, has been very vocal about political figures and the issues of the day to the point that he is now mentioned as a potential presidential candidate. He has regularly made appearances on other shows, including an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News, and on “The Stephen A. Smith Show” talks broadly beyond sports about issues that are in the news.
>He has talked about the possibility of running for president, but has downplayed the idea that he would actually campaign as he has said he enjoys his life.
>If he were to somehow run for the Democratic nomination in 2028, he would likely only be able to fulfill part of his contract with ESPN. Smith previously made $12 million per year with the network.
Looks like he isn’t running
> giving him more time to talk about politics
And by that, they mean whining about trans athletes.
EDIT: smith fans mad that his transphobic ass isn’t running
Good keep his Candace Owens loving ass the fuck away from the Dem primary.
From the very limited amount of stuff I’ve seen, Stephen A Smith seems a bit overrated
If he’s politically useful great, but it feels like people on our side are desperately trying to find someone to latch onto when the talent isn’t there yet
Smith bros join the polis bros, who else will fall before midterms?
Real talk who thinks the trade of having someone with no political experience to clean up trumps mess is worth it for name recognition and vibes? The candidate has to have both in my opinion.
Yeah I’d vote for him
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9DYuq6R6gY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9DYuq6R6gY)