Major Update Emerges on Pat McAfee's Future With ESPN

Pat McAfee is one of the biggest sports media stars at ESPN.

In fact, he and NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith, who hosts "First Take" weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon eastern Monday through Friday, are considered the faces of the network.

So it should come as no surprise that ESPN wants to keep McAfee around for the foreseeable future, which is why the sports media empire is in talks to lock McAfee up to a contract extension, according to Ryan Glasspiegel of Front Office Sports.

"Pat McAfee and ESPN are engaged in long-term contract extension talks, sources told Front Office Sports," Glasspiegel reported. "McAfee's current five-year deal with ESPN is not up until 2028 and finalization of a new contract wasn't imminent, the sources said. An ESPN spokesperson declined to comment.

"… ESPN's relationship with McAfee does not boil down to a strict talent deal like most of their on-air employees. Instead, the network licenses The Pat McAfee Show, which means writing one check for McAfee, his co-hosts and producers, and the program's studio in Indianapolis. On typical studio shows, ESPN has large overhead costs on top of what it pays the talent."

The "Pat McAfee Show" is typically one of the network's top programs in terms of rating, averaging 520,000 viewers in Q1, which falls right behind "First Take," which averages 524,000 viewers.

In addition to his namesake show, McAfee also is one of the more popular hosts of ESPN's "College GameDay" during the college football season.

His field goal kicking contest is typically one of the more talked about segment on the show each week. McAfee selects one random member from the audience to attempt a 33-yard field goal for money. He always matches that amount with a charitable donation as well.

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This story was originally published June 1, 2026 at 5:28 PM.