Mike Francesa still may not have a definitive landing spot after leaving WFAN on December 15th and he made sure to note, Andrew Marchand doesn’t know either.
“You should write, ‘You, Andrew Marchand, don’t know what I’m planning,’” Francesa said during a 20 minute phone call with Marchand of The New York Post.
According to Marchand, a source told the reporter, Francesa is working with CAA to secure his next media role and that partnership was also linked with The Athletic. The Athletic raised $20 million in funding which included an investment from CAA. The startup subscriber based platform is just two years old and after entering its third market a year ago, The Athletic’s coverage is now in 23 markets with plans to expand to 45 by the end of the year.
While The Athletic is a platform built on primarily writing, it’s not hard to envision them adding audio/video to their site considering their growth rate. The Athletic has targeted high-profile writers from each market they’ve entered, acquiring beat writers from major newspapers in the area, bringing in Francesa would certainly make a splash in New York.
Even though Francesa left WFAN in December, he isn’t contractually free to announce or sign with a new platform until April 1st. While a reunion with former partner Chris Russo on SiriusXM seems unlikely due to the expense of paying both hosts, Francesa will be joining Mad Dog in an upcoming episode of Russo’s High Heat on MLB Network.
Marchand contacted Francesa to confirm reports of the radio legend working with CAA and discussing a partnership at The Athletic. Francesa confirmed nothing, and according to Marchand the call was “feisty, but entertaining.”
“What we do know for sure is Francesa seems like he hasn’t lost his cranky edge or his ego in retirement. The nearly 20 minutes on the phone were quite entertaining. It should have ended with, Back aftah this,” wrote Marchand.
Brandon Contes is a freelance writer for BSM. He can be found on Twitter @BrandonContes. To reach him by email click here.