Shannon Sharpe won’t be coming back to ESPN. Andrew Marchand of The Athletic reports that the network has moved on from the Pro Football Hall of Famer and media personality. Sharpe recently settled a lawsuit with a former girlfriend who accused him of sexual assault.
Sharpe has not been on the network’s programming since late the accuser filed a lawsuit in April.
Sharpe denied the allegations in the lawsuit, calling the situation a “shakedown,” and maintained that his relationship with the accuser was “100% consensual.” Her attorney Tony Buzbee announced in July that the case had been dismissed with prejudice.
“On April 20, 2025, The Buzbee Law Firm filed a complaint in Nevada making several allegations against Shannon Sharpe on behalf of our client,” Buzbee said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter.) “Both sides acknowledge a long-term consensual and tumultuous relationship. After protracted and respectful negotiations, I’m pleased to announce that we have reached a mutually agreed upon resolution. All matters have now been addressed satisfactorily, and the matter is closed. The lawsuit will thus be dismissed with prejudice.”
No details of the agreement were released.
After retiring from the NFL back in 2004, Sharpe eventually embarked on a sports media career. He joined Skip Bayless on FS1’s Skip and Shannon: Undisputed in 2016 before leaving jumping to ESPN to team up with Stephen A. Smith for First Take in 2023. In the NFL, he won three Super Bowls over the course of a 14-year career and he was the first tight end with more than 10,000 career receiving yards.
He launched his Club Shay Shay podcast in September 2020 as a Fox Sports podcast. Club Shay Shay later joined The Volume, a digital podcast network founded by fellow sports media personality Colin Cowherd. Stars such as Katt Williams, Travis Kelce and Chad Ochocinco Johnson have all appeared on Club Shay Shay.
