Sean McManus has had little time to reflect on his nearly 27-1/2-year tenure at the helm of CBS Sports. Over the past month, we've had coverage of the men's NCAA Tournament and this weekend's Masters.
If anything, McManus has approached the past six months since announcing his retirement with a greater sense of gratitude. McManus' final event as chairman of CBS Sports will be at the network's signature tournament.
“I've been trying to absorb everything more than I normally would and be grateful for the incredible opportunity I've had,” McManus said in an interview with The Associated Press last week. “While some may be looking back, I look back with nothing but pride and love for both the events I was lucky enough to cover and the team I assembled.”
Mr. McManus, who turned 69 in February, started considering retirement two years ago. McManus and CBS President and CEO George Cheeks agreed the timing was right, as CBS will host the Super Bowl this year along with the NCAA Tournament and the Masters. David Berson, who served as president of CBS Sports for more than a decade, is McManus' hand-picked successor.
McManus' career began at an early age, attending events and working in sports production with his father, the late Jim McKay, who hosted ABC's “Wide World of Sports” and covered 12 Olympics. got a front row seat.
McKay also worked for CBS from 1950 to 1961 and hosted the Masters broadcast from 1957 to 1960. This marks his 68th consecutive year hosting the Masters on CBS, making it the longest current relationship between the network and a sporting event.
“Think about the 74 years that the McManus family left their fingerprints on the case. It's pretty amazing to think about a quarter century. His father left his mark on the tournament. Sean has been involved in this tournament for 28 years. That's pretty amazing,'' said Jim Nantz, CBS' chief NFL and golf announcer and Final Four selection from 1991 to 2023.
McManus began working for ABC Sports in 1977 as a production assistant and associate producer. Two years later, he moved to NBC and was promoted to vice president of programming development. In 1987 he was appointed senior vice president of U.S. television sales and programming for Trans World International, a division of IMG, and in December 1996 he joined CBS Sports as president.
He served as president of CBS News and CBS Sports from 2005 to 2011, and was appointed chairman of CBS Sports in February 2011.
“There are very few people, if any, who have had such an impact on the sports media industry. Plus, he is the epitome of class,” Berson said.
McManus came to CBS Sports when it was primarily a weekend show. It has grown from cable to television networks, websites and digital streaming.
Neil Pilson. Mr. McManus, who served as president of CBS Sports from 1981 to 1994, is one of many fans of Mr. McManus who has weathered the changing landscape.
“Right now, I think business is 10 times more difficult, but Sean has definitely navigated much more complex business environments than I have,” he said.
McManus' most significant accomplishments were bringing the NFL back to the network in 1998 and partnering with Turner Sports to host the NCAA Tournament in 2010.
From 1994 to 1997, when there was no NFL, CBS was in a sports wilderness in many ways. This devastated the sports division, causing CBS to fall from first to third place in prime-time ratings and switching affiliates between stations in major cities.
Tony Petiti, the Big Ten commissioner who worked for CBS Sports from 1997 to 2008, said there wasn't a day in his first year that he didn't talk to McManus about returning to the NFL.
“For someone who just got there, they really believed in him. The real skill was that Sean motivated the leaders at CBS to make the deal,” he said.
The winning bid for CBS in 1998 was $500 million a year. His current contract is worth $2.1 billion per season and runs through 2033. With the NFL helping to promote the show, CBS returned to being the top network in prime time.
“It would be almost impossible, probably insurmountable, to have a broadcast network without the NFL,” McManus said. “That's what drives all distribution deals. It's a promotional vehicle. It's a big deal. And I think today's broadcast model is very dependent on sports in general and he specifically on the NFL.”
McManus oversaw nine Super Bowls, including Kansas City's 25-22 overtime victory over San Francisco in February. The match became the most-watched program in U.S. television history, with an average of 123.7 million viewers across television and streaming platforms.
Roger Goodell, who was an integral part of the NFL's television agreement negotiation team even before he became commissioner in 2006, said McManus has long been a reliable figure on broadcast issues, even when he didn't directly influence CBS. He said he was an advisor.
“We need to find ways to improve the fan experience, and Sean has that voice and experience,” Goodell said. “His advice was invaluable because he was always someone with a very honest and insightful perspective.”
McManus' decision to partner with Turner for March Madness was motivated by two things. One is that the tournament was costing CBS, and that dividing the United States into eight regions without everyone having access to every game is outdated.
Beginning with the 2011 tournament, CBS and Turner's sales staff worked together, with CBS's Clark Kellogg sharing a studio desk with TNT's Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.
The partnership also includes the network's alternating coverage of the Final Four. TBS and TNT held their first title match in 2016. Starting next year, each network will pay an average of $550 million a year until 2032.
McManus also led CBS to soccer in the Champions League and NWSL. The NWSL has signed a wide-ranging rights deal that expands distribution across multiple networks, but the regular-season game package will remain on CBS, and this season's championship game will also be broadcast in prime time for the third consecutive year.
“They see us as the future of sports spectatorship, which is why they expanded the scope of their agreement with us,” said NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman. “When I took this job, I challenged them about winning championships in prime time and how much of a difference it would make to us. And for the last two years of that contract, they worked hard to make that happen.”
Mr. McManus leaves CBS with all of its significant assets locked up long-term. In addition to the NFL and March Madness, the NWSL will run through 2027, the Big Ten and UEFA Champions League rights will run through the 2029-30 season, while the PGA Tour and PGA Championship contracts do not expire until 2030. .
“The timing is right,” McManus said. “I think it’s good for the department and it’s very good for me.”
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