Over the last few years, John McEnroe has attempted to branch out to be more than just a tennis analyst. He’s been a game show host (ABC’s “The Chair“), a talk show host (CNBC’s “McEnroe” which at one time rated 0.0), an Olympics correspondent (2012 in London for both BBC and NBC), an actor (“CSI: New York”) and a panelist (for Bob Costas’ HBO show).
Now ESPN is going to give Johnny Mac an opportunity to do more than be an analyst for Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. He’ll be a panelist on SportsCenter to talk about all sports and conduct interviews. In addition, McEnroe will make appearances on ESPN2’s Olbermann and ESPN Radio’s Mike and Mike.
And McEnroe will also be heard locally in New York on the ESPN Radio affiliate there.
So McEnroe will become ESPN’s version of Fox Sports Live’s Andy Roddick, the former tennis star who comments on all sports.
He will remain with CBS to call its final year of the U.S. Open and NBC to call the French Open.
Here’s the announcement.
John McEnroe Expands Role at ESPN Beyond Tennis
ESPN tennis analyst and Hall of Famer John McEnroe will expand his role beyond tennis to include year-round, non-tennis appearances on television and radio. The 17-time Major winner (seven in singles, nine in doubles, one in mixed doubles) has worked the US Open for ESPN since 2009 and Wimbledon since 2012.
In addition to his work on tennis, McEnroe will serve as an analyst on SportsCenter discussing major topics of all sorts and handling sit-down interviews with top sports stars. He also will make regular appearances on ESPN2’s Olbermann and on ESPN Radio’s Mike & Mike, also seen weekday mornings on ESPN2. In addition, he also will also be heard on ESPN Radio New York (98.7 FM).
“Before John was a superstar in tennis, he was a sports fan…with sharp opinions and wit, as we’ve seen on our tennis productions,” said John Wildhack, ESPN executive vice president, programming and production. “His no-holds barred insights and personality will enliven whatever program or platform he is on,”
John McEnroe said, “I am excited about my expanded role with ESPN. It should be interesting and fun, as a life-long sports fan, to be able to voice my opinions on a variety of sports programs and forums, alongside some of the most talented people in the industry. The broad platform offered by ESPN makes it the perfect place for me to bring my point of view to all sports, not just tennis. ”
McEnroe won 77 singles titles in his legendary career, highlighted by four US Open titles and three at Wimbledon. He also won 10 more major championships in doubles or mixed doubles. Although a loss, his five-set duel with Bjorn Borg in the 1980 Wimbledon Gentlemen’s Final – highlighted by McEnroe surviving an 18-16 fourth set tiebreak – is one of the most memorable events in tennis history. An avid Davis Cup participant, he led the U.S. to five championships and later served as the team’s captain. He also won the NCAA singles and team titles while attending Stanford. In 2010, John founded the John McEnroe Tennis Academy in his hometown of New York City, where he is now working daily to develop the next great group of American tennis players.
Did You Know?
- John played in ESPN’s first tennis telecast, just one week after the network debuted 34+ years ago on September 7, 1979. It was a Davis Cup tie against Argentina in Memphis on September 14. ESPN’s Cliff Drysdale was on the call.
- John played in two memorable Davis Cup marathons on ESPN – the decisive quarterfinal victory over Sweden’s Mats Wilander in 1982 in St. Louis and a loss to Germany’s Boris Becker in 1987 in Hartford, Conn. Each match lasted over six hours.
- John’s younger brother Patrick has worked for ESPN since 1995. John defeated Patrick in the finals for his 77th and last singles title (Chicago, 1991, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4).
McEnroe is a big sports fan and he’s big on the New York Rangers as well as baseball. Should be interesting to hear him.
