EDITOR’S NOTE: Traug Keller is Senior Vice President, ESPN Audio. Keller provides an overview of ESPN Radio’s growth through the years. Click through the images in the gallery above.
Today, we kick off our celebration of ESPN Radio’s 25th anniversary with one of the voices who got us started, Keith Olbermann (7–9 p.m. ET). A quarter-century after our first broadcast, ESPN Radio has flourished as one of the most dynamic and innovative brands in the industry. I’m proud to say that we continue to grow and are well-positioned for sustained success.
ESPN Radio is the country’s largest sports radio network, growing from 16 hours of programming per day, to a full-fledged 24/7 business. In 2005, we debuted ESPN Deportes Radio, now the country’s largest Spanish-language sports radio network, providing unique content to our Spanish-language listeners. From Day One, ESPN Radio has strived to offer the best programming and voices out there — from Tony Bruno and Olbermann, to Dan Le Batard, Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic, to Jorge Ramos and Stephen A. Smith and many more. ESPN Radio has long been a paragon of knowledgeable and provocative personalities who all are united by the singular mission of serving sports fans.
As the leader in the industry, the network has created some of the most compelling programming around, with something for every fan – Mike & Mike, The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, The Right Time with Bomani Jones, Izzy and Spain, The Trifecta and many more — as well as producing top local shows like The Michael Kay Show (New York), Marcellus & Kelvin (Los Angeles) and Waddle & Silvy (Chicago). With collaborations across ESPN platforms like espnW, The Undefeated and FiveThirtyEight, ESPN Radio is ensuring that we have the most unique, diverse and informed shows on talk radio today.
– ESPN Senior VP Traug Keller
Our play-by-play portfolio is unparalleled as the rights holder to MLB, NBA, the College Football Playoff and National Championship, NFL Sunday games and more. Over the years, ESPN Radio has produced premier events like the FIFA World Cup, the Kentucky Derby, and The Open Championship. With more than 4,000 events produced over the last 25 years, and to now offering more than 300 annually, ESPN Radio has set the standard that is unequaled anywhere in the industry.
Yet, we do not rest on our success and work hard to remain the top network by embracing new distribution platforms to reach additional listeners. In addition to terrestrial radio, ESPN Radio is now accessible online, via satellite radio and through digital services. We also have a strong local presence, led by our owned-and-operated stations in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, and the more than 500 affiliated stations across the country. The network now offers original podcasts and long-form podcast series, and we continue to explore other avenues for growing the business and serving our listeners.
In addition, the staff who dedicate themselves to this platform – behind and in front of the mic – truly are the best in the business, and they are who make ESPN Radio such a special place. It is because of them that we are able to serve our listeners wherever, whenever, 24/7.
Thank you to all of our fans for being a part of the ESPN Radio family – it has been, and is, our pleasure to serve you.
