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Tony Reali is the host of ESPN’s “Around the Horn,” a daily sports debate show known for its game show-themed format. He has been the face of “Around the Horn” since 2004 and has hosted over 3,500 episodes. In addition to his role on “Around the Horn,” Tony Reali was also a regular presence on ESPN’s “Pardon the Interruption” from 2001 to 2014.
“Around the Horn” airs on ESPN weekdays at 5 p.m., totaling 230 shows a year. It is part of ESPN’s “happy hour” lineup, along with the Emmy award-winning “Pardon the Interruption.” The show garners an average of 2.5 million weekly views in the U.S., including re-airs on various ESPN networks, DVR views, podcast listens, and a global audience through affiliates.
Tony Reali is a popular on-air personality with a significant online presence, boasting over 800,000 followers on Twitter. He is known for his authenticity, energy, and positivity, both in the sports world and beyond. Reali is an advocate for various social and mental health causes and has contributed to publications such as “The Washington Post” and the “Anxiety and Depression Association of America.”
Reali has been actively involved with the Special Olympics, hosting athletic events and promoting inclusion in Unified Schools. He was the featured guest at the annual conference of the Special Olympics youth ambassadors, known as Generation Unified. In 2018, he openly discussed his family’s experience with grief after the loss of a child during childbirth on “Around the Horn.”
Tony Reali joined ESPN in July 2000, initially working on the quiz show “Two Minute Drill” by writing and researching trivia questions. He later became a researcher on “Pardon the Interruption” when it launched in October 2001 and took on the on-air role of “Stat Boy” to Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon. He also filled in as host and guest panelist on “Around the Horn.” In February 2004, he officially became the host of “Around the Horn.”
In 2014, Reali relocated from Washington, D.C. to New York to continue hosting “Around the Horn” while also working as a correspondent on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” He held this role through 2018. “Around the Horn” underwent a rebranding in 2018 and transitioned to a new augmented reality studio at Pier 17, South Street Seaport. In this studio, Reali can score the debates and utilize various visual filters.
Before joining ESPN, Tony Reali was a sportscaster for WFUV 90.7 FM in The Bronx, New York, where he served as the voice of Fordham football and basketball and hosted the long-running sports call-in show “One on One.” He also covered the New York Yankees, Mets, Giants, and Jets as a beat reporter. Additionally, he wrote sportscasts for WB 11’s nightly news from 2000 to 2001 and authored a weekly fantasy football column for the “Philadelphia Inquirer” in 2009.
Tony Reali was born in Staten Island, New York, and grew up in Morganville, New Jersey. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Communication and History from Fordham University.