Why Dianna Russini Decided To Leave ESPN After All Those Years? Know Her Next Move
American sports writer Dianna Russini is presently employed by ESPN as an NFL host, reporter, insider, and commentator on NFL Countdown and NFL Live. In July 2015, Russini joined ESPN and started hosting SportsCenter. She was the primary sports anchor for WRC-TV in Washington, D.C., before being hired by ESPN.
Patrick Mahomes believes this Chiefs team can be back here celebrating again next year. The goal is back-to-back.
As for the rings tonight, he had a say in the design of them “I’ll tell you this, it’s bigger than the one I have on my hand” pic.twitter.com/7h5fQ5HUCG
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) June 16, 2023
Russini, who was raised in Norwood, New Jersey, and was an All-State performer in track, basketball, softball, and soccer while attending Northern Valley Regional High School at Old Tappan, was born in The Bronx. She spent four seasons playing football at George Mason University. She played 51 times for George Mason, contributing one assist and seven goals overall.
View this post on Instagram
She was the newest reporter employed at WNBC in New York City when she started working for the network. She formerly worked for News 12 Westchester and the NBC affiliates WRC-TV, WNBC, and WVIT before relocating to Seattle and transitioning to sports as a reporter and anchor for CSN Northwest.
Russini joined ESPN in July 2015 after Disney officials heard about her sportscast in Washington, DC. Alongside Tom Luginbill, she worked as a SportsCenter host and sideline reporter for ESPN’s XFL Saturday afternoon games.
Russini has made the decision to leave ESPN and join The Athletic as their primary NFL Insider on August 11, 2023. She will also work with podcasts and appear on their video channels.
The Post has learned that Dianna Russini is leaving ESPN to join The Athletic as its top NFL insider.
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
One of ESPN’s primary NFL reporters for eight years, Russini appeared on all of the network’s top NFL shows.
Sources claim that ESPN offered Russini a rise to stay, but he chose to join The Athletic instead.
She will write NFL pieces for The Athletic, make appearances on its video platforms, and collaborate with podcasts. She is anticipated to begin soon.
The New York Times purchased the subscription-based business in January 2022 for $550 million.
The Times recently stated that it would replace its sports writers with writers for The Athletic and move its sports writers to other sections of the paper.
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
Due in part to the fact that the existing sports writers are union members and the others are not, The Times’ Guild had strong concerns about the change.
Even though it is trying to cut costs, ESPN wanted to keep Russini on board.
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
Around 20 high-profile personnel, including Jeff Van Gundy, Keyshawn Johnson, and Jalen Rose, were recently let go.
Even though Russini’s negotiations with ESPN were reportedly going well, she chose to move on to The Athletic.
With Russini departing, Lindsey Thiry is anticipated to become an NFL TV reporter for ESPN full-time, while Kimberley Martin and Jeff Darlington’s broadcast time may increase.
