After over two decades, legendary radio host Rich Eisen is going to return to ESPN, bringing his Rich Eisen Show with him.
The Athletic reports Eisen is gearing up to go back to ESPN as part of their “forthcoming direct-to-consumer offering.” He will bring The Rich Eisen Show, which has been on The Roku Channel since 2022, to ESPN. By joining ESPN, Eisen's show will be on ESPN+ and Disney+.
In the report, it's noted that the show could also end up on ESPN Radio. If it does, The Athletic notes it “would be viewed as an anchor for the network.”
Similar to The Pat McAfee Show, which is also on ESPN, Eisen's program would be licensed by the network. So, he would continue to maintain ownership and editorial control of it.
The Athletic figures Eisen will be positioned as one of the top faces of the upcoming service. However, he will not appear on any of their other networks, such as ESPN and ESPN2.
Rich Eisen's ESPN history
Previously, Eisen left ESPN for NFL Network in 2003 to join NFL Network. There, he became the face of the network, hosting their GameDay program. Additionally, he also calls certain games for them.
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The upcoming “direct-to-consumer offering” from ESPN is coming in the fall of 2025. According to The Athletic, it will allow customers to “forgo cable to subscribe.”
Per The Athletic, they also tried to court Colin Cowherd to the network. However, he ultimately decided to stay with Fox Sports, where he has been since 2015.
Like Eisen, Cohwerd was also part of ESPN. He joined them in 2003, starting The Herd with Colin Cowherd there in 2004. He jumped ship in 2015, and he has remained there since.
The Rich Eisen Show began in 2014, and it was quickly picked up by Fox Sports Radio. Eisen eventually moved to Peacock in 2020 before joining The Roku Channel in 2022. The move to The Roku Channel also meant it moved to a new location on SiriusXM as well.
Eisen has also embarked on other ventures outside of his gig as a top sports radio host. He appeared in episodes of The League and The Odd Couple, landing a recurring role in the latter. He also appeared as himself in the Draft Day movie.
Additionally, he was featured in episodes of the Disney+ series The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers. Eisen also introduced The Roast of Tom Brady for Netflix.