Leila Rahimi knows of the the long and rich history of radio in the city of Chicago. Some of the most impactful talent to ever grace the public airwaves come from the Windy City. Sports radio also shares in that rich history as 670 The Score has dominated the market for over three decades. Names such as North, McNeil, Boers, and Bernstein all have entertained sports radio listeners for nearly three decades. For all the history that The Score has delivered to sports fans over the years, the station made its own history in April when it elevated Rahimi as the brand’s first full-time female lead sports radio host in the city’s history.
“I get goosebumps,” said Rahimi. “It’s a shame that unfortunately it took so long, but that doesn’t take away from my gratitude… I appreciate the fact that I am the first. Hopefully that means that it becomes less novel the next time around.”
Rahimi has been a part of 670 The Score’s content in some sort since 2017 as she arrived in the market beginning her work for NBC Sports Chicago. Her rise built on a foundation of hard work and dedication to her craft through her upbringing in Texas. She graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor’s in journalism with sights on working in sports media.
The sports radio bug took a bite into Rahimi early in her career. She began her broadcasting career as an update anchor for The Ticket in Dallas. Rahimi also doubled her workload in television, working as an anchor and reporter, building a skill set that nearly twenty years later now finds her holding court with sports fans daily in Chicago.
“In all those roles, I never dreamt in a million years that I would make some sort of Chicago sports media history,” said Rahimi. “Never thought that that would ever happen. It’s hard to put into words.”
Rahimi & Harris’ Similar Path to Success
Rahimi hosts middays from 10 a.m.–2 p.m. alongside co-host Marshall Harris. The two worked previously while they spent time in Philadelphia at NBC Sports Philadelphia. However, it was Harris who inspired Rahimi to consider hosting programs on sports radio.
“Marshall at the time was doing part-time work as a contributor for Angelo Cataldi’s show on 94 WIP. When I think of the elite shows and the examples in our business, Angelo is top of mind,” explained Rahimi. “Marshall was inspiring in that way, to be able to provide an example for people like me who are primarily of the TV background.”
While Harris and Rahimi both shared experience together in Philadelphia, the same would happen at 670 The Score years later. Both would find themselves at one point as a full-time co-host with Dan Bernstein on 670 The Score.
Rahimi was named co-host with Bernstein in January of 2021, only to step down from the position in March of 2022 to take a full-time sports anchor role with NBC5 in Chicago.
Harris would fill the same role as Rahimi in September of 2024 after Danny Parkins left The Score for FS1 and Laurence Holmes was elevated from his role as Bernstein’s co-host to afternoon drive with Matt Spiegel.
Dan Bernstein ultimately was let go from 670 The Score in March of 2025. He was let go following a social media incident in which he engaged in a heated back-and-forth with a follower. Ultimately Bernstein threatened the follower to a fight and potentially doxxing the individual. Following the incident, Bernstein was pulled off the air for a full week and then let go in a brief announcement from 670 The Score Vice President Mitch Rosen.
“I’m very grateful for that time that Dan and I had together,” Rahimi reflected on her time working alongside her former co-host. “That set me up to be in a good place when it came to stepping in [for Bernstein]. Does that make it easier for the listener? No, not necessarily. Even though I’ve been on the midday shift at that point for five years consistently. My main concern was acknowledging why they [The Score listener] were there and making sure that they knew that it wasn’t as much about me as it was making sure I was there for that.”
Learning on the Job While Achieving Instant Success
Rahimi noted she’s still learning some aspects of how to drive a sports radio program. She also notes the show is still developing with its timing. The early results of her efforts have been impressive. Rahimi & Harris finished third for the spring book in the key demographic of men 25–54. The daypart showed an increase year-over-year for the daypart of 29%, leading all weekday programs on 670 The Score. A large part of the success of the show, Rahimi feels, is the accessibility of it. The show can be consumed live on air and online through several different video platforms and audio distribution apps.
“My biggest job is to make sure the shows are good every day. I don’t want people to have to look for our show. I want to be able to be where they need us to be, or where they can find us,” said Rahimi. “That’s who I’m concerned about is the person who wants to find us. Can they find us? If so, then we’re doing our jobs.”
Challenging Stereotypes of Women in Sports Media
The pressure to perform is always a challenge that any talent must combat with over time, but Rahimi understands that not every listener deals with change the same. In her experience working in both television and radio, Rahimi spoke at this year’s Barrett Sports Media Summit about how women in sports media are “inherently disruptive.” Her reasoning surrounded what she said was a prescribed set of behavioral standards that are the expectation for women in sports media.
Expanding on that thought, Rahimi said her job is to lead the conversation with honesty and depth.
“As a woman who is not necessarily positive all the time. [Who] talks about a team or asks for accountability. [Who] questions leadership and management, it comes off as more caustic,” explained Rahimi. “A lot of the sports media consumer on all platforms want women to be positive, like that more cheerleader type of role. It’s uncomfortable for some of them, and we hear about it whenever we talk about the situation that I think require accountability. They require fact-based discussion. They require something that isn’t necessarily positive.”
In her experience working in television, she was encouraged to develop her own voice. Rahimi developed a knack for her own takes on topics, even if they weren’t of a positive nature.
“I am supposed to talk about the news of the day,” said Rahimi. “The topics of the day in the city. What my curiosity leads me to ask more questions about in Chicago. That is something, for whatever reason, can be a little bit harder for certain consumers to accept.”
With experience in both television and radio in Chicago, Rahimi has had plenty of experience, feedback, and evidence on the matter.
“Frankly, the expectation for a main anchor in TV and radio in Chicago is to cover the news of the day,” explained Rahimi. “Ask the topics that relate to the news of the day. In my case at 670 The Score, having an opinion on those topics and tell you why I think they’re important. But being a woman in those roles where nobody’s ever been in the city, I think that’s where a bit of the conflict was. When I was received in those roles, I was giving what I thought was the expectation of the role. For some reason, it’s not as easy perhaps for some people to hear it coming from a woman and not a man.”
Staying Ahead of the Game
Rahimi says while she’s solely focused on the role of leading Rahimi & Harris, she’s not closed the door to doing more work in television. She stated her ideal setup would be a combination of both and would not consider limiting herself. She also just recently added color commentary duties to her plate in a broadcast partnership with 670 The Score and the WNBA’s Chicago Sky.
“I was really excited to see that 670 The Score not only wanted to partner with the Sky. They wanted to do the two games that we’re going to be at the United Center against the Indiana Fever,” said Rahimi. “I thought of it as a huge challenge. I’ve gotten so much help from other broadcasters in town like Laurence Holmes and Adam Amin. I was in a good place as far as preparation was concerned to take on the new challenge.”
After a decade calling Chicago her home, Leila Rahimi is only scratching the surface. Building her legacy in a town built by legends. Taking the lessons of the past and carrying the torch to meet a new generation of sports radio listeners in the Second City.
“Boers & Bernstein inspired my favorite talk shows,” said Rahimi. “To be able to carry that DNA of the humor and having fun with sports, knowing that is something Chicago listeners want,” said Rahimi. “That means a lot to me as far as just being able to do both and try to balance that and do it well.”
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. 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. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
