Rich Eisen on potential ESPN return

It’s been a long time since Rich Eisen was on ESPN airwaves, but he still considers the worldwide leader his birthplace in sports media and won’t rule out a return someday.

In an interview on the Bussin’ with the Boys podcast released Tuesday, Eisen wouldn’t close the door on a potential reunion with ESPN as he continues to own and operate The Rich Eisen Show independently.

“We have had conversations about it in the past, but it’s just never happened for various reasons. Like I said, I have no quarrel with them,” Eisen said. “Part of me feels like that’s my DNA, is it started with ESPN, and they’re part of my career and obviously they’re as big as ever. And so I love so many people who are there, Stephen A. (Smith) and Pat (McAfee) … and I have nothing but love for everyone there. So they’re always going to be in my thoughts. All the time. But it’s never happened, it just hasn’t happened yet.”

When cohost Will Compton pressed Eisen as to whether that “yet” was intentional, Eisen said it was.

“I did say yet, but I don’t know,” Eisen said. “Who knows what life [will bring].”

Eisen previously teased talks with ESPN in an interview with Ariel Helwani , and the fit makes sense.

The network is licensing more content than ever before. Its midday anchor is The Pat McAfee Show , which operates independently on YouTube and is licensed by ESPN to air on its network. Smith is reportedly including licensing options for The Stephen A. Smith Show as part of his ongoing negotiations with ESPN. Beyond that, ESPN also licenses UFC broadcasts and coproduces several shows, including the ManningCast , in conjunction with Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions.

On the radio and digital side, ESPN pays Good Karma Brands as the “official operating partner” for its content. Good Karma oversees marketing and ad sales for ESPN. These arrangements allow ESPN to keep production costs lower while also getting access to a broader base of talent and expertise than what it has in-house.

Eisen owns his show outright and currently licenses the video product to Roku Channel and distributes it on local radio through Audacy.

The current ESPN Radio lineup is a far cry from its star power even five years ago. Mike Greenberg’s Greeny on mid-days is the only recognizable talent in the mix.

Could The Rich Eisen Show (which airs at noon ET daily) slide into the midday lineup and port its audience back to ESPN, where it all began for Eisen? The possibility could make sense for both sides, but it’s far from a likelihood given the logistics and financial details that would need to be sorted out.

[ Bussin’ with the Boys on YouTube ]

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