First Take is an American sports talk television program on ESPN. Episodes air daily Monday through Friday, with the live episode airing from 10 am ET until noon, with reruns from noon to 2 pm ET on ESPN2 and from 2 to 4 pm ET on ESPNews (when ESPN has other sports programming commitments, ESPN2 will air the live feed in place of ESPN and ESPNEWS will reair the show in place of ESPN2) .
The show broadcast from Studio E at ESPN's headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut for its first eleven years, before the show moved to the network's new South Street Seaport facility on Pier 17 in September 2018 after Labor Day. It also has "roadshow" broadcasts for events such as the weeks of the College Football Playoff, the Super Bowl and the NBA Finals from the cities where those events take place.
The entire show is available as a commercial-free podcast following the broadcast of the recorded show. Clips of the episodes are also uploaded to the ESPN YouTube page for viewing.
In June 2025, it was announced that First Take would relocate its production to ESPN's new headquarters at 7 Hudson Square in Lower Manhattan. The show is scheduled to debut from the new studio on June 23, 2025, joining other programs such as Get Up and UnSportsmanLike at the facility. The move marks the end of First Take's tenure at the South Street Seaport Studios, where it had broadcast since 2018.
Contents
Format
Long-time sports reporter/analyst Stephen A. Smith is featured, along with various guests. The panelists debate various sports topics and offer hot takes about the sports news of the day.
Cast
Stephen A. Smith: (2012–present)
Former analysts
Skip Bayless: (2007–16)
Max Kellerman: (2016–21)
Host (full-time)
Jay Crawford: (2007–12)
Dana Jacobson: (2007–11)
Reischea Canidate: (2009–11)
Cari Champion: (2012–15)
Molly Qerim: (2015–25)
Shae Cornette: (2025–present)
Frequent guest analysts
Brian Windhorst: NBA Analyst
Kendrick Perkins: NBA Analyst
Tim Legler: NBA Analyst
Kenny Smith: NBA Analyst
Ryan Clark: NFL Analyst
Damien Woody: NFL Analyst
Louis Riddick: NFL Analyst
Domonique Foxworth: NFL Analyst
Mina Kimes: NFL Analyst
Marcus Spears: NFL/College Football Analyst
Dan Orlovsky: NFL Analyst
Bart Scott: NFL Analyst
Jeff Passan: MLB Analyst
Harry Douglas: NFL Analyst
Tim Tebow: NFL/College Football Analyst
Sam Acho: NFL/College Football Analyst
Alan Hahn: NBA Analyst
Chris "Mad Dog" Russo: NFL/NBA/MLB Analyst
Jeff Saturday: NFL Analyst
P. K. Subban: NHL Analyst
Pat McAfee: NFL Analyst
Cam Newton: NFL Analyst
Kenny Beecham: NBA Analyst
Frequent guest hosts
Christine Williamson
Victoria Arlen
Courtney Cronin
Former guest analysts/hosts
Charly Arnolt (2019–23): Guest host, now works for OutKick.
Rob Parker: Analyst/guest host (suspended from ESPN on December 20, 2012; did not return to network)
Chris Broussard: Now works for Fox Sports.
Will Cain (2015–20): Analyst/guest host, now works for Fox News and Fox & Friends Weekend
Rosalyn Gold-Onwude: Guest Host
Ryan Hollins: NBA Analyst
Jalen Rose: NBA Analyst
Keyshawn Johnson: NFL Analyst
Vince Carter: NBA Analyst
Michael Irvin: NFL Analyst
JJ Redick: NBA Analyst
Shannon Sharpe (2023–25): NFL/NBA Analyst (departed from ESPN following a sexual assault lawsuit)
Cam Newton: NFL Analyst
History
The show was originally hosted and moderated by Jay Crawford and Dana Jacobson, formerly of the show's predecessor Cold Pizza.
In August 2011, the show underwent a drastic format change. Segments of the show were taken out and Skip Bayless' role in the show saw a dramatic increase, while the show itself began to focus on the debate. The ratings for the show saw a drastic increase as a result, with a reported 58% increase for the first 3 months of 2012, compared to the same time in 2011.
On April 30, 2012, it was announced on-air that regular guest contributor Stephen A. Smith would be joining First Take on a permanent, five-day-per-week basis. On occasions he was reporting from elsewhere, Rob Parker was frequently featured as his replacement until December 20, 2012, when he was suspended for comments made about Robert Griffin III; he would not return, as ESPN allowed his contract to expire, rather than re-sign him.
In June 2012, long-time host Crawford announced he would be leaving First Take in order to present SportsCenter.
On July 23, 2012, the show debuted a new set and a new opening song Every Word Great by Wale featuring Stalley. It now featured an open slideshow showing Bayless and Smith arriving at campus (Once Kellerman joined the show in 2016, scenes showing Kellerman replaced those of Bayless). They are still in Studio E but they are in the middle of it, with a new desk.
In line with these changes, First Take introduced on October 1, 2012 a new permanent moderator, Cari Champion, previously a reporter from the Tennis Channel.
Previously, the show had a rotation of moderators, such as Todd Grisham, Don Bell (now Sports Director & anchor with Philadelphia's KYW-TV), Cindy Brunson (now with Fox Sports Arizona) and Jemele Hill.
On January 13, 2015, the first special edition of the show aired after the 2015 College Football Playoff National Championship titled First Take: College Football Championship Post Game Special.
Controversy
Through the show's success, First Take has experienced substantial controversy and faced increasing criticism, mostly concerning perceived sensationalism (particularly favouritism over topics involving New York and Los Angeles teams, LeBron James and the Dallas Cowboys).
Among claims have been that First Take has used hot button racial issues to create inflammatory debates and increase ratings. Most notably, during a discussion regarding Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III, frequent guest Rob Parker asked whether Griffin III was a "brother" or a "cornball brother." When pressed by host Cari Champion as to what that meant, Parker mentioned that Griffin III had a white fiancée and mentioned claims that Griffin III was a Republican. In response, Bayless asked whether Griffin III's braids did anything to assuage Parker's concerns. Stephen A. Smith has also been at the center of the controversy with remarks about Cleveland Cavalier J.R. Smith's dress wear during a Cavaliers game that included a "hoodie" being worn on the bench in late October 2017. This resulted in a public rant by J.R. Smith taking to Twitter to express his disapproval of Stephen A. Smith's comments, ultimately ending the rant with the accusation of Smith being an "Uncle Tom". J.R. Smith made these remarks due to a segment from Stephen A. Smith stating that "white folks" would be of disapproval in regard to what could be a "Trayvon Martin case being revisited" with a tweet questioning the work of Stephen A. Smith stating, "this man is always reaching. What does me wearing a hoodie on the bench have anything to do with reminding people of #TrayvonMartin". Stephen A. Smith not only reprimanded Smith for wearing a hoodie during the fourth quarter of a late October game, but reprimanded Nike for making a uniform that is unprofessional amongst racial remarks.
The show has been criticized for what is perceived by many as its excessive coverage of the career of Tim Tebow. During his tenure with the Jets, in which he did not start in a game, and threw just eight passes the entire season, Tebow was nonetheless often a leading topic.
As Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James began a series of playoff appearances with the Cavaliers, host Skip Bayless became well known for his belief that James had been overrated by the media and not received enough criticism for his team's playoff failures. Bayless has himself been criticized by fans as well as members of the media for exaggerating James' failures and diminishing his successes. In an exchange with Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Cuban argued that Bayless had reduced his analysis of the 2011 and 2012 NBA Finals series to subjective and limited assessments of player psyche, and had not even considered the offensive and defensive strategies used by the teams in each series.
