Paul Finebaum says ESPN banned him from shows after telling OutKick he might run for office

Last September, Finebaum told Clay Travis during a podcast that he was considering leaving ESPN to run for U.S.Senate in Alabama as a Republican, revealing that he had also voted for President Donald Trump in 2024.

A week later, Travis reported that ESPN had removed Finebaum from his scheduled television appearances because of the interview.This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners.If you sign up or place a wager, FOX News may be compensated.

This content was created by a team that works independently from the FOX newsroom."Per sources: Disney/ESPN has removed @finebaum from appearing on @ESPN since his @outkick interview expressing interest in running as a Republican for senate in Alabama.ESPN has canceled all network appearances on all shows, including some that have occurred for a decade plus," Travis posted on X.ESPN/SEC Network Analyst Paul Finebaum is on set prior to the college football Playoff Semifinal game at the Chick-fil-a Peach Bowl between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Ohio State Buckeyes on Dec.

31, 2022 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga.(Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)An ESPN public relations executive disputed the report, despite the obvious fact that Finebaum had disappeared from his usual ESPN television appearances, even following a weekend of major college football upsets."This is not true at all.

The below is TOTALLY FALSE," ESPN's Bill Hofheimer wrote above Travis' report.Finebaum sided with Travis' version of events this week."Of course, I was sidelined," Finebaum told Awful Announcing when asked about the story."I’d done the same shows every day for 13 years, and the next thing you know, I’m not on there after a college football weekend."OutKick asked ESPN for comment Thursday following Finebaum's remarks.

The network sent the following statement:"As we stated last year, Finebaum was never banned."ESPN announcer Paul Finebaum before the 2024 SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stad...