ESPN has fired a host who recently voiced opposition to female-identifying men competing in women’s sports.
On Thursday, The Athletic reported that ESPN has terminated the contract of “Sunday NFL Countdown” host Samantha Ponder, a longtime reporter for the network who previously covered college football. Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III was also fired by the Disney-owned outlet.
Sources who reportedly spoke with The Athletic and Fox News claimed both sportscasters were let go due to “financial reasons.”
The timing of Ponder’s firing is suspect, however, given that it came days after the ESPN host voiced opposition to trans-identifying men participating in women’s sports.
The moment came on Aug. 6, when ESPN “College Gameday” host Kirk Herbstreit responded to an X post asking if “men belong in women’s sports.”
“Of course not. Ridiculous question,” the former Ohio State quarterback wrote.
Ponder replied to Herbstreit’s tweet with two clapping hands emojis, at which point an X user told her to “[d]efine woman and man” and asked if “a woman [with] XX chromosomes but extremely high testosterone” is considered a woman. In her response, the sportscaster wrote: “XY= male XX= female.”
The incident was hardly the first time Ponder, a Christian, has spoken out in defense of women’s sports. According to Outkick, “Ponder first commented on the issue in May 2023, reminding her followers that it is ‘not hateful to demand fairness in sports for girls.’”
“I barely said anything publicly abt this issue & I’ve had so many ppl msg me, stop me in the street to say thank you+ tell me stories abt girls who are afraid to speak up for fear of lost employment/being called hateful,” the now-former ESPN host wrote while quoting a tweet by former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines.
Ponder’s dismissal isn’t the first case of ESPN parting ways with talent who openly espoused non-leftist views.
In October 2021, the Disney-owned network suspended then-“SportsCenter” host Sage Steele after she criticized the company’s Covid shot mandates and Barack Obama for professing to be black, despite having a white mother (as Steele does). Steele filed a lawsuit the following year, alleging ESPN and Disney violated her First Amendment rights by suspending her over the remarks.
The suit was ultimately settled in August 2023, at which point Steele departed ESPN.
Steele posted a video voicing support for Ponder following her ouster on Thursday.
“Samantha has taught me so much about God, about Scripture, about the Bible, about not giving up, and about standing tall,” Steele said. “I just need everyone to know this is a brilliant woman, an incredible mother, who has also made me a better mother … and I am so excited for her future.”
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood
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