The Varsity

Mar 12 2025 59 ep. 41 mins 73

The Varsity Podcast artwork

Puck Sports Correspondent John Ourand and a rotating cast of industry insiders take you deep inside the executive suites and owner boxes that run the entire sports business. You’ll hear interviews with everyone from players to network execs and everyone in between. The Varsity is an extension of John's private email for Puck by the same name. New episodes publish twice-weekly, every Wednesday and Sunday.

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LIV and Let Die

Mar 12 2025 44 mins

Golf Channel’s Eamon Lynch joins John for an in-depth breakdown of the chaos percolating professional golf. Eamon explains why the sport is facing a crisis of confidence and structure—and why the PGA Tour can’t just rely on its past glory anymore. He also dishes on the Tour's search for a C.E.O., calls out its history of arrogance and complacency, and takes a deep dive into t

Women’s Soccer’s Billion-Dollar Glow-Up

Mar 08 2025 49 mins

NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman joins John for a deep dive into the league’s burgeoning popularity, following a record-breaking season in attendance and TV viewership. She highlights the power of storytelling in building cultural relevance before pulling back the curtain on the league’s massive media rights deals with ESPN, CBS, and Amazon Prime—a game-changing 40-fold incre

A New D.C. Sports Monopoly?

Mar 05 2025 41 mins

Axios’s Sara Fischer rejoins John to dig into the rapid decline of R.S.N.s, and in particular, the unraveling of MASN—once the home of the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles. With the Nationals walking away from the network entirely, could this move pave the way for Ted Leonsis to buy the team and create a D.C. sports monopoly? Plus, the duo forecast the fallout of the

Coming to America: World Cup Edition

Mar 02 2025 42 mins

Roger Bennett, founder of the Men in Blazers Media Network, joins John for an in-depth look at the highly anticipated 2026 World Cup in North America. He explores the challenges of building momentum and awareness leading up to the tournament, its potential to leave a lasting imprint on American soccer culture, and the significance of tentpole events in sports media. To learn more

The MLB-ESPN Breakup Song

Feb 25 2025 40 mins

The Athletic’s Evan Drellich joins John to weigh into the imminent ESPN-MLB divorce, and offer a behind-the-scenes snapshot of how owners are coming to grips with the split. Evan also explains why he doesn’t think this is truly the end of the ESPN-MLB relationship, previews baseball’s upcoming labor negotiations, discusses the financial fallout from the R.S.N. collapse, and h

Big East Hoop Dreams

Feb 23 2025 48 mins

Big East commissioner Val Ackerman joins John for a deep dive into the present and future of college sports. She lays out the Big East’s strategy for thriving in a football-dominated landscape, probes the possibility of a Big East-ACC merger, and breaks down the conference’s approach to revenue sharing. Val also reflects on her groundbreaking role as the WNBA’s first commissi

UFC Rights Fights, F1 Deal Heat & ESPN’s Media Moneyball

Feb 19 2025 41 mins

CNBC’s Alex Sherman joins John for a deep dive into how leagues can maximize profits from social media engagement in the streaming era. They also wade into the brewing media rights battles between traditional networks and streaming giants, with UFC and F1’s rights up for grabs, before Alex shares his personal insights on the overall state of sports media and the business behind

Grant Hill From the Owner's Box

Feb 16 2025 46 mins

NBA Hall of Famer Grant Hill joins John for a candid conversation about his pivot from the court to the sidelines, where’s he's become a standout broadcaster. Hill discusses his ownership stakes in various sports franchises, the health of the NBA, and the impact of their blockbuster media rights deal. He also reflects on leading Team USA to back-to-back gold medals and weighs in

Shams’ Art of the Scoop

Feb 12 2025 36 mins

ESPN’s Shams Charania, the consummate NBA insider and veritable scoop machine, joins John to probe some of the biggest business stories ahead of NBA All-Star Weekend: the impacts of sports betting, Maverick Carter’s attempt to jumpstart an NBA-adjacent international rival, and the league’s evolving trade dynamics. Plus, Shams explains the bizarre Luka-A.D. trade—and how he

NBC Sports in The Big Easy

Feb 09 2025 38 mins

NBC Sports president Rick Cordella joins John from Super Bowl weekend in New Orleans for an in-depth conversation on the business of the NFL and the evolving landscape of sports media, breaking down the NFL’s unparalleled ability to draw massive viewership and the complexities of media rights negotiations. Then he offers a preview at what’s in store for NBC’s NBA coverage and