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USA Today
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
What's ESPN replacing Around the Horn with? Here's a (temporary) answer.
What's ESPN replacing Around the Horn with? Here's a (temporary) answer. ESPN has a hole to fill now that Around the Horn has ended its 23-year run -- last week, host Tony Reali explained the scoring system and gave us one last Goodfellas opener -- in the 5 p.m. ET timeslot before Pardon the Interruption. But what will the Worldwide Leader do in that spot now that ATH is no more? The answer we have is short-term, not long-term, so we'll see what kind of programming ESPN comes up with for that late-day placement. For now, per the Hollywood Reporter, "Beginning on Tuesday, May 27, a 30-minute SportsCenter, anchored (from Bristol, of course) by Matt Barrie and Christine Williamson, will temporarily air in its place." That's it for now, and with the additional changes at the network -- no more SportsCenter LA -- viewers will have some things to get used to.
USA Today
24-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Who were the winningest panelists of all time on ESPN's 'Around the Horn'?
ESPN's iconic show "Around the Horn" came to an end on May 23, 2025, after a long, long run. The show, hosted by Tony Reali, brought together media members as panelists and they competed against each other while offering opinions on current sports and occasionally news and pop culture. A toast to "Around the Horn" and the writers and media folk who earned enough wins to make the top 10. 10. Frank Isola: 192 wins 9. Bob Ryan: 224 wins 8. Israel Gutierrez: 228 wins 7. Jackie MacMullan: 259 wins 6. Jay Mariotti: 329 wins 5. JA Adande: 339 wins 4. Kevin Blackistone: 386 wins 3. Bill Plaschke: 428 2. Tim Cowlishaw: 551 wins 1. Woody Paige: 700 wins
New York Post
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Emotions were on full display during final episode of ESPN's ‘Around the Horn'
The mute button was pressed for the last time on 'Around the Horn.' The legendary show produced its final broadcast on Friday after a two-decade run on ESPN spanning nearly 5,000 episodes. The network announced in March that 'Around the Horn' would conclude on May 23, and a replacement has yet to be revealed. Vibes on the last show were somber from start to finish, with longtime host Tony Reali opening with an emotional tribute to everyone who has worked on the show. During the episode, Reali invited on some of the most prominent panelists from 'Around the Horn' for a final 'Face Time' with each of them thanking the show. Longtime panelist Bob Ryan pointed out how much has changed in the sports world since the show's inception in 2002. 'When we came on the air on Nov. 4, 2002, the following things that were true are no longer true,' Ryan said. 'Pitchers did not get a ticker tape parade for seven innings. There was a thing called traveling, and the so-called Eurostep was confined to Europe and maybe South America. 'We knew who the heavyweight champion was and an American occasionally won a tennis major. The Curry making all those threes, his name was Dell. LeBron James was in high school, and Caitlin Clark was nine months old. But life goes on and we thank you for all of these years.' J.A. Adande took his time to show respect to fellow panelist and 'Around the Horn' wins leader Woody Paige, who was also on the final show, and compared his performance on the broadcast to that of Michael Jordan. 3 Around the Horn on X 'Michael Jordan once told me that Woody was his favorite panelist. Game recognizes game. GOAT recognized GOAT,' Adande said. Reali, who took over as host of 'Around the Horn' from Max Kellerman in 2004, spent the final minutes of the show explaining how the scoring system works, and it was nothing short of emotional. 'I decided that not every topic needs to be scored the same,' Reali said. 'Because life begets life. And life finds a way and so does the scoring system.' Reali, 46, continued to explain the parallels between the scoring system and life 3 Sports journalists Tony Reali and Tim Cowlishaw attend ESPN The Party at Basketball City – Pier 36 – South Street on January 31, 2014 in New York City. Michael Loccisano 'I wanted to host the most real show I could so I engineered the scoring system to be real and lifelike,' Reali said. 'The system, totally and purposefully unpredictable, is just like life. Intentionally changing, just like life. Some days, stats got you big points and other days the exact opposite. 'Life scores us all differently every day with a rulebook that changes every day and you have to roll with it through good and bad, that's how I feel. That's the secret right there. Because what works one day might not work the next, but you'll work through it through the good people around you. It was a very good system, and it worked for a very long time, and now it's all over.' 3 Tony Reali on the final episode of 'Around the Horn' on May 23, 2025. AroundTheHorn/X Reali then concluded his final monologue with come comments that will surely pull at the heartstrings of fans. 'I was 24 when I started on this show and I grew up on this show,' Reali said. 'This show helped me grow up and maybe some of you feel the same way too. Life came fast then slow as it does, then gradually, then suddenly, I shared through it all. The highs and lows because I believe that life is best when shared in full.'
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Social media in meltdown as legendary ESPN show 'Around the Horn' ends after 23 years
It's a show that's been around longer than Oprah, David Letterman's run on The Late Show, and Sesame Street. Now, after 4,953 episodes, 'Around the Horn' signed off the airwaves of ESPN for the last time. It's a decision that's indicative of its time - even though it helped to spark the very movement that may have led to its axing. Around the Horn allowed sports journalists around the country to use their knowledge in a head-to-head debate format - which grew the profile of the very journalists on said show. Nowadays, sports journalists are just as much 'personalities' as they are people who research and write stories. In an era where sports networks, newspapers, and online publications are driven more by revenue than anything else, a show which runs for 23 years is unheard of. And so, the 'mute button' came for Around the Horn, which signed off for an 'infinity-and-a-half-hour break' on Friday. In its final episode, host Tony Reali invoked his favorite movie 'Goodfellas' with a montage thanking the crew behind the scenes to open the show. The final 'panel' on the show was the most decorated roster in the broadcast's history: Woody Paige, formerly of the Denver Post, Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News, Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times, Kevin Blackistone of the Washington Post, Frank Isola of ESPN, Bob Ryan and Jackie MacMullin of the Boston Globe, and J.A. Adandae - the Director of Sports Journalism at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. As far back as I can remember I always wanted be a sportscaster... — Around the Horn (@AroundtheHorn) May 23, 2025 After 23 years on the air, Around the Horn has signed off for the final time from ESPN as longtime host Tony Reali ended the show which produced 4,953 episodes Reali signed off by placing the show's infamous 'mute button' on the floor of the network's studio's in New York as they faded to black. Plaudits for the show came in quick and heavy throughout its final half hour - with many mourning the program which inspired so many to become sports journalists (including this writer, who is convinced he would have killed it on ATH). Paige, the show's winningest panelist with an official 700 victories, became known for his chalkboard which displayed humorous messages. This time, he simply posted, 'See you around...' on X, formerly Twitter. Ryan, who won 224 times on the show, posted, 'The final Around The Horn today after 22 1/2 years. I want to salute first Max Kellerman and especially Tony Reali for their fantastic work handling the hardest hosting job in all of television. It's been my honor and privilege to be there since Day 1.' Clinton Yates, who won 135 episodes, said, 'goddamit I didnt want to cry AGAIN this week, @AroundtheHorn. What a show. What a run. What a joy.' Mina Kimes, who won 89 editions of the show, paid tribute saying, 'God that @AroundtheHorn panel. Tim, KB, of the coolest humans I've ever met. And from being a personal hero (I was so intimidated by her!) to a pal; sent me one of the first gifts I received my son was born. She means so much to women in our industry.' Kevin Clark, who leaves the show with the highest win percentage at 29 wins in 92 appearances, posted, 'Around The Horn changed my life and I know that's true of every panelist. They let me be myself on TV (for better or worse) and that's what everyone in this business dreams of. Tony is a genuinely amazing person as are [producer Aaron Solomon], [Josh Bard] and the whole crew. Damn I'll miss it.' Multiple former panelists on the show paid tribute after it went off the air the final time Countless other sports writers, creatives, and fans posted their tributes as well. Kris Pursiainen of Clutch Points posted, 'Goodbye, Around the Horn. You were everything right with sports talk. And that's why you're leaving us. The indomitable @TonyReali is a force. And he was kind enough to give a few Rams a peek behind the curtain in May '23. Don't take any sports coverage you love for granted.' 'Sad to see Around The Horn end,' wrote soccer podcaster Ben Cork. 'Sad that even the most lowbrow sports media of my childhood is too dense and inaccessible for the current mode of regurgitating roster scoops and parroting league/team/agent PR.' 'Around the Horn has been on the air since I was 2 and I started watching it religiously as soon as I was old enough to care about sports,' posted Emily Adams of the Hartford Courant. 'Truly believe this show planted the seed that made me want to be a journalist. A huge and heartbreaking loss for sports media & fans.' Sports content creator Kofie Yeboah remembered the show as 'the perfect place for ESPN to introduce new TV talent' while US Weekly's Russ Steinberg posted, 'I'm not ready for this' before the final episode began. One fan of the show wrote, 'the youth coming home from school and watching twitch streamers instead of kornheiser/wilbon on pti or the guys on around the horn is a big problem with modern society.'
Hindustan Times
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Around The Horn is ending and ESPN will look different next week: Here's why iconic show was canceled
After nearly 23 years, ESPN's iconic sports debate show Around the Horn aired its final episode on Friday, days after Los Angeles-based SportsCenter halted production earlier this week. Additionally, veteran anchor Stan Verrett, a 25-year ESPN stalwart, will depart this summer as his contract is not renewed, The Hollywood Reporter reported, citing sources. These moves reflect ESPN's strategic shift toward cost-cutting. Around the Horn, launched on November 4, 2002, and hosted by Tony Reali since 2004, concluded after 4,953 episodes. The show, known for its lively debates among journalists like Woody Paige, Mina Kimes, and Bill Plaschke, was canceled as ESPN seeks to 'modernize' its programming, per The Hollywood Reporter. The network cited a desire to focus on game-centric content and adapt to shifting viewer habits, with audiences increasingly favoring streaming and highlights over traditional debate formats. ESPN executive David Roberts told New York Magazine that the decision wasn't driven by ratings or cultural shifts but by a need for a 'more modern concept', aligning with the 2025–26 launch of ESPN's standalone streaming service, priced at $29.99/month. Former panelist Jay Mariotti claimed on Substack that the show's inclusion of diverse panelists and discussions on race or politics alienated viewers. Host Tony Reali dismissed this on The Dan Patrick Show. ESPN will temporarily fill the 5 PM slot with a 30-minute SportsCenter, but no permanent replacement is confirmed, per TVLine. On May 19, 2025, ESPN aired its final Los Angeles-based SportsCenter, anchored by Linda Cohn and Stan Verrett, ending a 15-year run that began in 2009. The network relocated production to its Bristol, Connecticut, headquarters. Stan Verrett, a New Orleans native and Emmy Award-winning anchor, will leave ESPN by summer's end after 25 years, as his contract was not renewed, per Front Office Sports. Verrett, who joined in 2000 and co-anchored the 1 AM ET SportsCenter from Los Angeles since 2009 with Neil Everett. Sources told OutKick that Verrett offered to stay at a lower salary, but ESPN declined. He will, however, anchor SportsCenter in the coming months and participate in ESPN's '50 States in 50 Days' tour starting June 27, 2025, to promote its streaming service.
