The Washington Commanders unveiled iHeartMedia DC as their new radio partner Tuesday, announcing games will be broadcast next season on BIG 100.3 FM.
The partnership is a three-year deal and comes after the Commanders split from their longtime radio home, The Team 980. A Washington spokesperson said last month that the Commanders had opened up the bidding process for their radio rights and several companies, including Audacy — the parent company of The Team 980 — made offers.
Commanders President Jason Wright said in a statement the team chose iHeartMedia because of their reach in the DMV area. The company has seven stations locally, part more than the 850 stations the company owns around the country.
“We are excited to team up with iHeartMedia as we enter our inaugural season as the Washington Commanders,” Commanders team president Jason Wright said in a statement. “With the largest reach in the DMV, and as the most downloaded and streamed podcasting publisher in the United States, iHeartMedia outperforms competitors in every demographic and daypart.
“We feel confident this partnership will be a win for all parties involved, but especially for our fans who will benefit from expanded access and content within the DMV and beyond.”
The team said that fans will be able to listen to gameday broadcasts on the station’s website and on iHeartMedia’s app. Team-centered content will also be featured across the company’s seven stations in the District: BIG 100.3, 97.1 WASH-FM, HOT 99.5, DC101, 98.7 WMZQ, DMV’s Black Information Network 1120 and 104.7 WONK-FM.
Washington’s split from Audacy drew headlines last month when Team 980 host Kevin Sheehan said that the station disagreed on the value of a new deal, adding that “it was important for us to continue to be able to provide honest, objective information and analysis about the [Commanders] on our talk shows.”
The latter implication sparked a strong rebuttal from the Commanders, with a spokesperson noting that Audacy was an “active and aggressive participant” in the bidding process.
The Commanders had aired games on The Team 980 since 2008, when owner Dan Snyder originally bought the station through his broadcasting company, Red Zebra Broadcasting. Snyder sold 980 in 2018 to media conglomerate Urban One, which then sold the station again to Audacy (formerly Entercom) two years later. The station also aired Commanders games for a stretch in the early 1990s.
As part of Tuesday’s rollout, Wright, senior vice president of media and content Julie Donaldson and coach Ron Rivera appeared on “The Don Geronimo Show” on 100.3 to announce the partnership.
“It’s an opportunity for us to have a bigger reach, to get our message out as to who we’re trying to become,” Rivera said. “We’re trying to establish a new culture and get this football team going in the right direction. It’s been a while, we need to get back on top, and just knowing we can reach so many more fans, I’m excited about it.”
The Commanders are the 18th NFL team to partner with iHeartMedia. MLS’s D.C. United is another local team that partners with the company as their games air on 104.7.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.