A Top Five List of Female Sports Broadcasters

They’re the buffer of the broadcast, a sports fan’s dream and seemingly the perfect package. Bottom line is, these girls probably know more sports than you. Does that rub you the wrong way?

Providing insights during the big game, these female sports broadcasters are sponsorship gold. But as some networks tout strict endorsement guidelines for their talent roster, who has the upper hand?

Let’s send it down to the sideline for our top five list of women broadcasters and their endorsement stock.  

5. Katherin Webb

Age: 24

Network: N/A

Stock: Down

According to RadarOnline.com, Webb cut ties with Alabama QB AJ McCarron a few weeks back. After Alabama defeated Ole Miss this weekend though, Webb gave McCarron a victory smooch in front of dozens of cameras. Thanks to the quarterback, she stumbled upon the spotlight during the 2013 BCS National Championship Game and found herself covering the Super Bowl for Inside Edition. In her first role as a sports correspondent, former Miss Alabama USA stole the show, again, during Media Day.  

Interestingly enough, Webb landed in the 2013 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue following the Big Game and hit a role on ABC’s reality TV Show, ‘Splash.’ Without an exclusive network deal, Webb has full marketing range and is set to appear in new Carl’s Jr. and Hardees ad campaigns. She also posed with AJ McCarron’s mom on the cover of Access magazine.

Now that’s climbing the ladder.

4. Jenn Brown

Age: 32

Network: NFL Network, NBC

Stock: Down

The former Florida Gator softball star hit the ground running upon leaving Gainesville. After hosting shows on E! and HD Net, Brown became the first female reporter on Inside the NFL on Showtime. Her college softball career set her up with as a top model for Under Armour. She joined ESPN and her marketing stock looked gold until the network barred her from becoming the spokeswoman for Icehouse in 2011. After serving as the sideline bombshell for ESPN’s college football, the College World Series, Little League World Series and X-Games, she parted ways with the network and dropped off the radar. She recently launched a jewelry line, joined NFL Network and played co-host to American Ninja Warrior on NBC.

Brown worked as a spokeswoman for GNC but her involvement has been stagnant as of late. Not being in the daily spotlight, Brown’s stock is down but, hey, she can give Icehouse a call.

3. Michelle Beadle

Age: 37

Network: NBC

Stock: Down

Last week, NBC canceled Michelle Beadle’s show, The Crossover. Now, rumors are swirling that Beadle is in the process of leaving NBC and heading back to ESPN.

It’s where she started her career, teamed with Colin Cowherd on SportsNation.  There, she was able to strut her sarcastic character to thousands. And it was back-in-action earlier this month when a Philly radio host questioned her weight. She entered pure Beadle mode, firing back with a classic tongue-and-cheek response. It’s what set her apart from others in the industry, her quick and witty personality.

After leaving ESPN in 2012, she immediately filled her plate on NBC by co-hosting Access Hollywood, covering the Olympics, appearing on NBC Sports and landing her own show, which was just axed.  She was reeling in the endorsement deals and appeared in the latest Bridgestone commercial with the Lions Matt Stafford and the Colts Adam Vinatieri.

Although her stock hit a speed bump, expect her to be featured, rather than have one-liners, in commercials and advertisements.

2. Samantha Ponder

Age: 27

Network: ESPN

Stock: Up

The departure of Erin Andrews, Rachel Nichols, Jenn Brown and Charrissa Thompson from ESPN quickly opened the door for Ponder.  The former restaurant host at ESPNZone in New York, turned the Vikings Christian Ponder’s wife, has taken the reigns of college sports television by storm.  Although the co-host of ESPN’s College Gameday and the sideline reporter for Thursday Night College Football has taken the fast roads since graduating from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. in 2009; ESPN is known for strict endorsement guidelines for their staff. Those limitations and rules blatantly bar Ponder from reaching her full endorsement potential and may even be part of the reason of the departure of Andrews, Brown and Thompson.

Since Ponder is now locked down with the Vikings quarterback, she’ll walk from the racy photo shoots. Expect bigger deals to come for Ponder, though, especially with her fresh NFL connections of her hubbie.

1. Erin Andrews

Age: 35

Network: Fox

Stock: Up

Andrews is the Queen of the industry and did it right since day one. The picturesque “American Girl” climbed the ladder of ESPN. Soon she found herself on shows like Dancing with the Stars and Good Morning America. Andrew’s was gold for brands until her endorsement deal with Reebok in 2011 was forced to come to a screeching halt due to a “conflict of interest”. The controversy put the network’s endorsement guidelines in the limelight.

When she left ESPN in 2012 for Fox Sports, Andrews face was plastered everywhere by TruBiotics. Expect Andrews to enter to world of motion pictures as her stock continues to rise.

Off the cusp:

Rachel Nichols, Ines Saniz, Charrissa Thompson, Bonnie Bernstein