In a move that would have been unthinkable a short time ago, pioneering New York City sports-radio station WFAN and 41 other stations owned by Audacy, one of the nation’s leading audio and radio companies, will be available on SiriusXM
The move seemingly ends a long-standing rivalry between SiriusXM and terrestrial radio: In 2008, Chris “Mad Dog” Russo left his legendary partnership with Mike Francesa on WFAN, breaking up “Mike & the Mad Dog” to start his own channel, “Mad Dog Sports Radio” on SiriusXM. Russo followed legendary morning radio host Howard Stern, who left traditional radio for an exclusive show on SiriusXM that he launched in 2006
Now, listeners can hear Mad Dog and his cohorts, as well as WFAN, without switching platforms
The SiriusXM-Audacy agreement is for sports and news stations around the country, encapsulating 42 in total in 29 markets. The 23 sports-radio stations include WIP in Philadelphia, WEEI in Boston, The Score in Chicago and The GAME in San Francisco
Access is expected to begin Sept. 1
Audacy is receiving a licensing fee in the deal. The exact terms are unknown. SiriusXM is able to sell its own ads when listeners tune into the local radio stations on its platforms
SiriusXM is the home of most live sports, from the NFL to the NBA to MLB to the NHL to college sports. Besides Mad Dog, it offers sports specific channels on the NFL and other sports. The partnership now fills a longtime gap in SiriusXM’s inventory, which was local sports programming
All Audacy stations will be available on the SiriusXM app, while some, including WFAN, will be available through in vehicles as well. The Audacy stations will still be accessible on all of its current platforms, including radios, the Audacy app and connected-home devices, like Amazon’s Alexa
As part of the sharing agreement, SiriusXM personalities, like Russo, may appear as cross-promotional guests on WFAN and other Audacy stations. Top radio personalities are expected to show up on SiriusXM as guests as well
