ESPN tried to lure away a sportscaster from Fox Sports for a second time, and lost out once again.
Both ESPN and Fox Sports have had a rivalry in recent years when it comes to signing the biggest names in the sports media world.
The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand reported that ESPN attempted to bring back Colin Cowherd to the network.
Cowherd is Fox Sports’ top daily show personality and previously worked at ESPN.
The report shared that ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro met with Cowherd in Los Angeles before February’s Super Bowl 59.
But after the meeting, Cowherd agreed to stay with Fox Sports on a three-year contract extension.
The contract is worth millions, but the exact dollar amount has yet to be revealed.
Social media users reacted to the report on X.
“Don’t see how he fits, unless they make The Herd an ESPN2 thing,” one said.
“Why?” another asked.
The 61-year-old Cowherd has been approached by ESPN to return in the past.
In 2023, Cowherd told Marchand that he had taken a meeting with a now-former ESPN executive who was interested in a reunion.
Cowherd, who’s known for his honest and raw opinions, has been with Fox Sports since 2015.
His popular program “The Herd with Colin Cowherd” competes in the afternoon TV slot against ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show.
Other than his daily show, Cowherd also created his own podcast business, The Volume, which could’ve potentially partnered with ESPN in a deal.
ESPN was ready to employ Cowherd, who has a similar role to Pat McAfee’s, which signaled the network’s goal to ramp up its content when it offers its full-service direct-to-consumer offering in the fall.
twitter/TheHerdCowherd has been the host of his hit self-titled show on Fox Sports since 2015[/caption]But Cowherd decided against going back to ESPN, where he became popular thanks to his run from 2003-2015.
However, his ESPN departure came with controversy.
The network suspended Cowherd on his way out due to controversial comments he made about Dominican baseball players.
Recently, ESPN and Fox Sports have been going back and forth in attempts to poach on-air broadcasters.
Last month, The Athletic reported that Fox Sports tried to land longtime College GameDay host Rece Davis for its college football and soccer coverage.
XCowherd is known for his unfiltered sports takes[/caption]But Davis turned down Fox Sports to sign a multi-year contract extension with ESPN.
Fox has been successful in luring former ESPN stars which including Tom Rinaldi, Emmanuel Acho, and Adam Amin.
However, ESPN signed Fox’s NFL No. 1 broadcasting team of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman to lucrative contracts.
And the network recently added Fox’s No. 2 NFL director Artie Kemper for Monday Night Football and analyst Peter Schrager.
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