Legendary sportscaster Brent Musburger said Friday he no longer will serve as the radio voice of the Las Vegas Raiders.
Musburger, 83, made the announcement Friday on his Twitter account. He became the Raiders’ play-by-play caller in 2018 in Oakland and relocated with the team to Las Vegas in 2020.
“Many thanks to the @Raiders organization for fond memories,” Musburger wrote. “I’ll miss broadcast partner Lincoln Kennedy and the radio production crew.”
The Raiders didn’t immediately comment.
Musburger’s national broadcast career began in 1975, and he worked for CBS Sports, ABC and ESPN until his retirement in January 2017. He hosted “The NFL Today,” called seven BCS national championship games and also worked on events such as the NCAA Final Four, Grand Slam tennis, the Masters, horse racing, boxing and major league baseball.
He also is the lead on-air talent and managing editor for VSiN, The Sports Betting Network.
Former NFL executive Michael Lombardi, the man multi-Super Bowl winning NFL head coach Bill Belichick called “one of the smartest people I’ve worked with,” is joining the Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN).
The Las Vegas-based, multi-media sports wagering information outlet announced Thursday Lombardi will soon spearhead revamped weekend programing from new studio facilities in the sportsbook of the Ocean Resort Casino in Atlantic City, N.J.
The new studio facilities will serve as the home for weekend morning shows featuring Lombardi and current VSiN host Jonathan Von Tobel. The programming, which will debut in the next few weeks, will kick off VSiN’s live weekend offerings at 10 a.m. ET on Saturdays and Sundays.
Brent Musburger is apparently the new radio voice of the Oakland Raiders. However, a spokesperson for the Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSiN) has declined, in an e-mail and telephone conversation with Sports Handle, to confirm or deny their afternoon host and managing editor’s new position.
It’s believed Musburger’s VSiN program, “My Guys in the Desert” would continue with the veteran sports personality as host, even if he accepts the new job.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal citing unnamed sources says the 79-year-old Hall-of-Fame broadcaster will replace longtime Raider radio voice Gary Papa. The Raiders are expected to relocate in Las Vegas in time for the 2020 NFL season. A new $1.9 billion stadium for the team near the Las Vegas Strip is currently about 15 percent complete, but is expected to be ready in time for the move.
Legendary Broadcasters Brent Musburger Expected Return to Radio Broadcast Booth With Oakland Raiders, Soon-to-Become Las Vegas Raiders
Industry observers speculate the delay in a formal announcement could be the result of the possibility of the NFL’s need to examine the specifics of Musburger’s deal with the team. In his prominent role at VSiN, Musburger is now a major advocate of the growing business of sports betting.
The NFL has laid out its “core principles” on the expanding enterprise of sports wagering now underway thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in May, which overturned the federal law essentially banning Nevada-style sports betting in the other 49 states. The league calls for consumer protections, for protections of its intellectual property, and would prefer a federal framework for sports betting, as opposed to regulation by the separate states. The league’s longstanding policy prohibiting players and team employees from wagering on its contests is unlikely to change.
With respect to Musburger and the NFL Compliance Plan — consider the third and sixth bullets from the document dated January 2018 and signed by Commissioner Roger Goodell:
Section K of the NFL Compliance Plan
Compass Media Networks has exclusively managed the Oakland Raiders’ radio broadcast rights since 2010. It’s unclear if Musburger would face any restrictions in terms of real or perceived gambling content in his new role or even if he could cross promote or advertise the Raiders’ games on VSiN and the VSiN broadcasts and products, such as its newsletter, during the Raiders’ broadcasts.
VSiN, which began operations in February 2017, is not a gambling site. Its stated mission when founded by Musburger’s brother, Todd Musburger and his son Brian Musburger, is to provide “actionable” information for prospective bettors. It is located at the South Point Hotel Casino Spa in Las Vegas and provides its information via video and voice streaming and over the Sirius/XM satellite radio network.
