Less than a year after leaving ESPN West Palm 106.3 FM, Ken LaVicka will be returning to its airwaves, announcing on social media that he is serving as the English-language radio play-by-play voice of Inter Miami CF. LaVicka will be on the broadcast from Chase Stadium on Saturday as the team faces New York City FC in a regular-season matchup. Under his new role, he will be calling games solo in the MLS regular season and Leagues Cup, he revealed in a social media post Friday morning.
The game presentations will feature LaVicka calling home games on site and most road games from a remote broadcasting location. Matchups are slated to be preceded by studio host Mike Rizzo, who is currently co-anchors afternoon drive at the station alongside Colin Russo.
“Because Inter Miami had a little bit of a look at what I could do last season and obviously ESPN 106.3, I had such a long decade-and-a-half relationship with them, I was asked to come back and take on full-season duties, and I couldn’t turn it down,” LaVicka told Barrett Media. “Especially with their standing within MLS and professional sports and Lionel Messi especially.”
The announcement of LaVicka joining the broadcasts regularly comes shortly after the Good Karma Brands-owned radio station became the official radio partner of the team under a partnership that includes regular-season games and playoff matches. Inter Miami CF also signed a deal with Deportes Radio 760AM, also owned by Good Karma Brands, to air the Spanish-language radio broadcasts for the team. The soccer team is entering the season with a star-studded roster that includes a mix of homegrown players and international phenoms, including Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez and Benjamin Cremaschi.
“It is an outstanding opportunity and a realm that I’m excited to get into because it’s still maybe the most unique professional sports situation in all of South Florida – just the standing that they’re in with the Messi brand – the fact that they are chasing a championship this season. It’s just a great opportunity all around for me.”
LaVicka was a member of ESPN West Palm for 17 years before departing the outlet last April, ending his three-year tenure hosting in middays with Theo Dorsey and Stone Labanowitz. In a previous interview with Barrett Media, he referred to the transaction as “a corporate decision” that “was definitely not mutual.” Outside of his commentary work, he has also taken part in episodes of By All Accounts, a show on YouTube he started with WQAM digital content producer Zach Krantz.
Throughout his broadcasting career, LaVicka has participated in live game broadcasts of Florida Atlantic University football and basketball while also calling NWSL matches on a variety of digital platforms. Moreover, he has broadcast Inter Miami CF games on radio in the past, including a key victory against Columbus last October. In addition to hearing Saturday’s game broadcast locally on the ESPN-affiliated radio station, consumers can tune in on the Deportes Radio FC app or by utilizing the home radio feeds on SiriusXM and Apple TV.
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