NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess) — Veteran sportscaster Bob Costas appears poised to leave NBC after decades of covering sports for the network.
According to the USA Today, Costas, 66, and his representatives have been conducting negotiations about being released from his contract, which runs through 2021.
NBC declined to comment to USA Today, but Costas told the newspaper that he did not consider himself to be an ideal fit for the network any longer.
“There was a very long period of time when NBC’s programming suited my interests and abilities very well, from (late-night talk show) Later, to the news magazines, to baseball, the NBA, and the Olympics. And after deciding on my own to leave the Olympics after having done a dozen of them, you just look around and say, ‘What was once a perfect fit no longer fits that description.’,” Costas told USA Today in a brief phone interview.
Costas is the longest-serving sportscaster at NBC and joined the network in 1979. Since then, he’s been the face of the network’s sports coverage, working as the lead announcer in everything from the World Series to Super Bowls. Costas has been the prime-time host of 12 Olympic Games. His programs on NBC Sports included Football Night in America, Rock Center, Today, and he is the current host of Bob Costas Tonight.
However, in recent years, Costas has taken on an “emeritus” role at NBC Sports, which included less airtime, covering major sports events such as the death of Muhammed Ali.
According to the New York Post, which first reported the talks between Costas and NBC, Costas is interested in pursuing a more direct sports journalism with a show that includes “news-making interviews and commentaries, some of which might extend beyond sports.”
