Every member in sports media can always agree on one thing: success on the field leads to success off it. Whether you’re in radio, television, podcasting, or print, the goal is to grab a bite of the apple when the local franchise can call themselves champions.
Earlier this month, the Philadelphia Eagles won their second NFL championship, beating the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX. Following the victory, the rabid fanbase of Philadelphia celebrated in the streets, loud and proud, as only one would expect a die-hard Philadelphia sports fan to do. It shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone who follows sports that some would say there’s a slight stereotype that plays into what makes a “Philly fan,” and that’s where the highly successful Philadelphia sports satire podcast The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show taps into that stereotype and plays the hits with the most success.
“The social media following and the views have really skyrocketed on us, especially as we hit playoff time in December, January, February,” said Sharief Ali, who plays ‘Tony Fusco’ on the podcast. “We had by far our best months in terms of metrics and views, doubling and almost tripling what we normally do any given month. It’s been really amazing.”
What was once a simple bit idea pitched in a pre-show morning meeting of The Herd with Colin Cowherd has now turned into a weekly podcast with a massive social following. Ali, along with co-host Andrew Samson, who play the characters ‘Tony’ and ‘Paulie Fusco’ respectively, were producers on Cowherd’s program in 2016.
“Sharief pitched an idea talking about sports talk radio in the Philly area and how it’s just full of clichés,” said Samson of the pitch nearly ten years ago. “Colin jumped on this and was like, ‘Yeah, there are so many clichés. These guys are always talking clichés. It’s ridiculous.’”
What was once an idea in a morning meeting has now turned into a successful passion project for both Samson and Ali. The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show, distributed by iHeartPodcasts and FOX Sports Radio, is a satire of sports talk radio and “hot take” media personalities hailing from the City of Brotherly Love. While the show is not built on any one specific personality from the past or present voices of the market, the building blocks of how the show is written and produced lean on the tools of the trade from both Samson and Ali’s radio beginnings.
“We both come from that producing background,” said Samson, who plays Paulie Fusco. “When we were in our jobs, the goal was to have the smartest angle on a topic, the most unique angle that made people think. In this show, we try to do the reverse. We want to have the dumbest angle that shows no thought possible—so dumb you can’t even believe somebody would say that. And then the joke is that Paulie and Tony are delivering these takes as if they think they are the smartest takes in the world.”
With the goal of getting the laugh and earning the subscribe or follow, some brash Philadelphia sports fans may not buy into the satire, considering it potentially an insult to their native tongue. What might surprise you is that fans of The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show want to be more a part of the act, not just consuming the content like a normal show or podcast.
“It’s been really amazing because our audience is all in on the joke,” Ali said of the podcast’s following. “I liken it to WWE. When you go to a show, you sort of suspend your disbelief and join in on the storylines. And our audience, over time, has started to buy in. So the audience also is in on the joke most of the time.”
Speaking of the audience, The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show currently leans on short-form video to drive views and followers. Their combined TikTok and Instagram following surpasses 100,000 followers, with every show edited and packaged for YouTube consumption outside of the audio podcast alone. As noted earlier, everyone loves a winner, and The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show netted over eight million views in the month leading up to the Super Bowl.
The show also made news recently as they were named back-to-back winners in the “Best Sports Comedy” podcast category, beating out digital competitors such as Shannon Sharpe and Chad Ochocinco’s Nightcap podcast. So what makes The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show stand out among their competition?
“We worked for several people who are very good at coming up with takes, and they’re very legitimate voices. And then there are other people who are clearly just talking for clicks and don’t know what they’re talking about. The line between those two people is very blurry, and that is what we are joking about,” explained Samson.
“We are the people who are… we try, and we’re sort of real, but we’re also sort of wrong. We’re making fun of that hot take world where anybody with a mic can say anything now.”
The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show is more than just two guys crafting, writing, and executing a podcast. They also welcome notable guests from across the sports world—only to abruptly kick them off the show as part of the humor within the joke. Notable names such as sports radio host Dan Patrick and former NFL players Chris Long, Eric Dickerson, and Drew Bledsoe have all been welcomed to the show—only to be cast off for something they said that didn’t agree with either host.
However, like any other sports radio program, there’s always that one big-name guest that seemingly remains elusive.
“The recurring joke is that we invited Nick Foles on the show every week, and that he agreed to come on, but for some reason, never did for 432 consecutive weeks,” joked Samson. “Now, we’re in kind of a bind because now that Jalen Hurts is also a Super Bowl MVP for the Eagles, we’re not sure where to go with the bit right now.”
Ali added, “We’re very fortunate that most of our wish list has actually come on the show. So, Tom Brady—that’s goal number one—and Nick Foles.”
Two former radio producers now producing their own highly successful podcast as a passion project should also serve as a model for talent who have yet to step outside their comfort zone. Both say it took a lot of effort—and still does—but the rewards now are fulfilling in many aspects.
“We edit it, we post, we are all doing the work, and we learn so much about how each platform works differently,” said Samson. “Because when we get to see how each clip performs and doesn’t perform, we learn from that. So that is my best advice. The more hands-on you can be, the more you take on yourself, the more you’re going to learn about what is working and what isn’t for your podcast. Then you make changes based on that.”
The Paulie & Tony Fusco Show drops new episodes each Thursday wherever podcasts are available.
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John Mamola is a columnist for Barrett Media. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. Honored to be a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Media and honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL). Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
