Former U.S. Open host Chris Berman signs extension with ESPN, will reach 50 years
Former U.S. Open host Chris Berman signs extension with ESPN, will reach 50 years
Longtime ESPN anchor Chris Berman has agreed to a multiyear contract extension that will keep him with the network through 2029, when he will become ESPN's first 50-year employee.
Berman, 70, will have a prominent role in the network's first Super Bowl broadcast in 2027 and continue to host the signature "NFL PrimeTime" show on ESPN+, according to a network press release announcing the extension.
A major golf fan, Berman was the host of the network's U.S. Open nightly show from 1986–2014, as well as the network's U.S. Open anchor from 2003–2014.
'I came to ESPN at 24 years young for my first full-time TV job. I had a full head of hair, was wet behind the ears, and my assignment was to host the wrap-up SportsCenter at 2:30 a.m. ESPN had been on the air for less than a month and we had fewer than 100 employees," Berman said.
'Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined turning 70 and still being here at our network, which long ago became an icon of sports broadcasting. We're closing in on our very first Super Bowl, and now I will be able to be part of that, too."
A six-time national sportscaster of the year, Berman was hired just after ESPN launched on Sept. 7, 1979.
He quickly became known for the creative nicknames he gave to sports figures, and he became an icon as the primary voice of "NFL PrimeTime," the Sunday night highlight show on ESPN that ran from 1987 to 2005 on ESPN and since 2006 on ESPN+.
Berman has covered 43 Super Bowls for ESPN, as well as 30 World Series and 31 MLB All-Star Games.
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