FOX Sports 1 and 2 to televise Mike Francesa's daily WFAN talk show
Mike Francesa is coming to FOX Sports.
FOX Sports and CBS RADIO's WFAN-AM/FM have reached a multiyear, multimedia agreement that brings Francesa's radio show to the nation's newest sports networks, FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2, live from coast-to-coast. The announcement was made Wednesday by David Nathanson, general manager and chief operating officer, FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2.
"The Mike Francesa Show" will begin weekday telecasts Monday, March 24, on FOX Sports 1 (1 to 4 p.m. ET) and FOX Sports 2 (4 to 6 p.m. ET), continuing to originate from WFAN's lower Manhattan studios and broadcast locally at 66AM and 101.9FM. The show also is streamed live via FOX Sports GO through participating video providers.
"We are thrilled to add Mike Francesa to our FOX Sports family of channels," said Nathanson. "Mike is without question one of the most popular sports personalities in New York and has maintained a significant national reputation through his syndicated NFL show and his WFAN program, which was previously simulcast on YES. He's knowledgeable and opinionated with an ability to attract top-name guests who appeal to sports fans everywhere. This is a fantastic addition to FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2."
"I'm thrilled to be teaming with FOX Sports -- a brand that continues to expand across the entire sports landscape," Francesa said. "The combination of WFAN with FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2 will prove to be a powerful partnership."
Francesa has for more than 25 years been the on-air cornerstone of WFAN, the nation's first all-sports talk radio station launched in July 1987. Since 2008, Francesa has hosted his own afternoon show, "Mike's On," on WFAN. From 1989 to 2008, he had a critically acclaimed on-air partnership with Chris "Mad Dog" Russo, who together co-hosted the "Mike and the Mad Dog Show." In 2000 the Francesa/Russo duo became the first sports-talk hosts to win the Marconi Award for Major Market Personality of the Year, an award Francesa received as an individual in 2012, placing him on a very select list of multiple Marconi winners, and the first sports radio host to earn radio's biggest honor more than once. Both Talkers Magazine and Radio Ink recognized Francesa as the No. 1 sports talk host in the country, and Talkers ranked him the 35th most important radio talk show host of all time.
The St. John's University graduate resides on Long Island with his wife, Roe, and their three children, Jack, Emily and Harrison.
