Last year, the news felt sudden. After 4,953 episodes across nearly 23 years on ESPN, Around the Horn came to an end. For Tony Reali, who hosted the program for 21 years, the show marked his evolution from a 24-year-old, sports-obsessed newcomer into one of the network’s most beloved personalities.
Since Around the Horn aired its final episode in May 2025, Reali has remained largely out of the spotlight. Aside from the occasional social media post, he spent his time deciding what came next. Rather than rushing back to network television, Reali found inspiration during his time away, realizing media was increasingly being shaped by individual creators instead of network executives.
“I wanted to create not the next job search, but the next job venture. Once I got to that space in my head, what am I going to invent? Around the Horn 2.0 or PTI [Pardon the Interruption] 2.0 would be something I knew how to do. But I wanted to do something different,” explains Reali.
Last week, Reali unveiled that new venture. After launching his own media company, Real Ones Media, and partnering with iHeartMedia, he introduced Real Deal with Tony Reali. The sports culture podcast is built around one memorable sports moment at a time. The venture blends a podcast, game show, exclusive interview, and walk-and-talk into one production.
“This idea of living in the moments is a byproduct of how I was consuming content at that time in 2025. I live in a world where I’m reminded of a great sports moment in my feed or in my group chat, and I want to unpack what that is,” says Reali. “It all comes back to feelings. I’m a big feelings guy. It’s a great unlocking for me sharing in the connection you feel with sports.”
Building Real Deal
Reali considers himself fiercely independent. During his time at ESPN, he only took on projects where he felt fully invested. That approach continues to shape how he’s building Real Deal and the other projects he hopes to develop in the coming years.
After Around the Horn ended, multiple podcast platforms approached Reali with concepts centered around his talents. Instead of immediately accepting an opportunity, he immersed himself in studying creators who had built successful independent media businesses. He spent months talking with them about content creation, ownership, and the freedom that comes with building something on their own.
“I didn’t want to go more than a year [away from media], and I was three quarters down the way to building one thing. Then the opportunity to partner with iHeartMedia came up and I pivoted,” said Reali about going fully independent compared to partnering with iHeartMedia for Real Deal. “For me, this [Real Deal with Tony Reali] is sports culture. They [iHeartMedia] have wins in culture. I want to be intentional about this, and that’s part of my long-term strategy.”
Reali said iHeartMedia expressed interest in partnering with him almost immediately after Around the Horn concluded. Other companies also reached out with opportunities, ranging from reaction-based sports content to daily programming similar to pregame and postgame shows.
In addition, there was plenty of speculation throughout the industry. Following FS1’s shake-up of its daily lineup, many assumed the network would pursue Reali, but no offer ever materialized. Netflix also became the subject of rumors, yet Reali says the streaming platform never made an offer.
Still, Reali paid close attention to the direction both companies took. FS1 partnered with Barstool Sports to launch Wake Up Barstool, while Netflix reached agreements with The Ringer, Barstool Sports, and iHeartMedia to add podcast programming to its platform.
“I saw where they landed which was digital shows on TV,” noted Reali. “It became apparent to me that those offers are going elsewhere. So, it wasn’t a feeling of I’m on the outs. It was about preparing myself to be the most attractive candidate or building my own brand.”
The End Of Around The Horn
Reali also noticed the trend extending to his former home at ESPN. The Pat McAfee Show and The Rich Eisen Show both operate under licensing agreements in which ESPN distributes the programs without exercising creative control. He views those types of agreements as an increasingly commonplace strategy and one he knew he needed to prepare for as he planned his next move.
Despite the show’s cancellation, Reali still considers Around the Horn a success by every measure. He credits ESPN for allowing the program to receive the sendoff its loyal audience deserved. The emotions shared during the final episode reflected exactly how he wanted the show to conclude.
However, Reali says he had already processed the show’s cancellation well before the final episode aired in May 2025. Throughout his tenure, he believed Around the Horn and Pardon the Interruption occupied a unique place within ESPN’s lineup.
“All the other shows on ESPN feel different than Around the Horn and PTI. Those are different animals. I much preferred where I was with the species of shows that were there,” says Reali. “I got reached out to twice in 25 years. Maybe three times. Not about other opportunities with ESPN. More keep doing what you’re doing type conversations.”
Even during the show’s final months, that lack of communication continued. Reali reiterated that Around the Horn and PTI operated in “a different lunar system,” adding that ESPN never offered him another opportunity to remain with the company.
“It’s messy to break up with somebody. You always want more communication and you want to hear more. I didn’t hear as much as I wanted to in the moment, but I wasn’t waiting on them,” explained Reali.
Reali says the end of Around the Horn wasn’t a “blow.” Instead, his focus quickly shifted toward building what came next. He admitted that dedicating himself almost exclusively to Around the Horn and PTI may not have been the smartest business decision, but he believes it was the right creative one.
In the months surrounding the show’s finale, Reali received an outpouring of texts, emails, and messages thanking him for everything he invested in a program that informed, entertained, and introduced audiences to new personalities along the way. As ESPN continues leaning into nostalgia with the returns of Rich Eisen, Mike Golic, and others, Reali says he would welcome the opportunity to return for a special one-off appearance with the network he called home for more than two decades.
“I’m not running from my past. I’m very thankful for what the show meant to me and the viewers. There’s no ‘I’m not working with them’ feelings at all,” said Reali. “Of course, I’ll do a show and be happy to see people if they’re interested. But that’s not going to be my only brand. I’m not running away from it, but I’m not running back to it either.”
Evolving Into A New Era
Now, Reali’s attention is centered on building Real Deal. Each episode begins with him walking into the studio, identifying a memorable sports moment, exploring why it resonated, finding the right guest, reliving the experience, and wrapping up with a walk-and-talk that brings the story full circle.
His goal isn’t to climb to the top of the podcast charts. Instead, Reali wants to continue serving the audience that has supported him throughout his career. He’d rather deeply connect with the top five percent of his audience than simply rank among the top five percent of podcasts nationwide. He understands the challenges of the medium but has no intention of backing away from them.
“If your people that are there from the start are into you, that’ll be a success for me from the start,” said Reali. “I don’t want to silo myself away where I’m only doing one show. I want to people to feel Real Deal, and I have other ideas I’m wanting to do down the road. There will be three to four others to grow out the portfolio in a way. I don’t see overexposure with the voice.”
Reali is leaning on his producing background to shape each project’s format. While the person remains the same, the creative challenges are different. He also plans to expand beyond podcasting by hosting live events, creating new opportunities to connect with the sports fans who have supported him throughout his career.
“I had an odd awakening in this year off. It’s not ‘you are a sports host.’ It’s what are the greats doing? Colin Cowherd, Dan Patrick, Nick Wright among others. What are they doing on their shows? Mine was different following the comedians and several YouTubers,” explained Reali. “I use the term irresistible on this show. That’s the moments I’m chasing in this show. It’s the one you can’t resist when it shows up in your feed. You’ve seen it five times in that ten second clip, and you’re still unpacking some of the feelings behind it. That’s what success will look like for me building out a roster of shows bringing those feelings out in different ways.”
Reali built his career helping audiences debate the biggest moments in sports. Now, he’s betting those moments can fuel something even bigger than a television show. Whether through podcasts, live events, or future projects still on the drawing board, he’s chasing connection over convention.
For someone who spent more than two decades defining one of ESPN’s signature programs, the next chapter isn’t about replacing Around the Horn. It’s about proving the most compelling stories are still the ones he hasn’t told yet.
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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.