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Mike Watts (sportscaster)

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Mike Watts
Born
Michael Watts

1993 (age 30–31)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Alma materFordham University (BS)
OccupationSports commentator
Years active2014–present
Websitewww.mikewattsonair.com

Michael Watts (born 1993) is an American television sports commentator. He has commentated on soccer games including for the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), USL Championship, and CONCACAF Champions League, and worked in other sports.

Early life and education

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Born in 1993, Watts grew up in the Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights, Ohio.[1][2] He played football in his youth until he had a back injury as a sophomore at Saint Ignatius High School.[3] He then commentated school soccer, ice hockey, and other sports for the online Saint Ignatius Broadcasting Network, a new student club that he eventually led.[3] He also helped run the school's Student Sports Information Department, writing a media guide about the football team.[3] He graduated from Saint Ignatius in 2011 and received his degree in finance from Fordham University in New York City in 2014.[4] While in college, he was a sports reporter, anchor, and manager for the NPR affiliate WFUV, covering college and professional sports in the New York area.[2][4]

Broadcasting career

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Watts has worked as a freelance sports commentator for a range of sports leagues and networks.[4][5] He first commentated professionally in 2014 for Sky Blue FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and was the league's youngest commentator.[6] He became "the voice of USL Championship" as a play-by-play announcer on ESPN after first commentating for the league at the 2015 USL Cup final.[7][8] He began commentating weekly during the 2016 USL season.[9] Working with broadcast partner VISTA Worldlink led to him also commentating for the CONCACAF Champions League.[9] He has hosted a Sirius XM radio show about the USL, USL All-Access, with analyst Devon Kerr since April 2021 and formerly hosted the radio show USL Coast to Coast.[9][10]

Outside of soccer, Watts has been a preseason commentator for the National Football League's Cincinnati Bengals, alongside color commentator Anthony Muñoz on the local WKRC-TV broadcast, since 2018.[4][11] He has also commentated college football for the radio network Westwood One and been a public address announcer for sports events at Madison Square Garden in New York City.[8]

During a U.S. Open Cup game in April 2024, Watts and Kerr wove 235 song titles by Taylor Swift into their broadcast, and later that month he worked fifteen song titles from Swift's The Tortured Poets Department into an NWSL broadcast the day the album was released.[12]

References

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  1. ^ Watts, Mike [@MikeWattsOnAir] (November 24, 2022). "There's some commentary in this documentary ..." (Tweet). Retrieved April 21, 2024 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ a b Walters, Connor (November 2018). "Love at First Call". Saint Ignatius Magazine. Saint Ignatius High School. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Warsinskey, Tim (February 22, 2011). "Sports broadcasting proves to be a winning field for St. Ignatius' Watts: Tim Warsinskey's Take". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d Kiesewetter, John (August 8, 2018). "Meet Mike Watts, Bengals New Preseason TV Announcer". WVXU. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  5. ^ Dellenger, Ross (June 26, 2020). "'There's a Lot of Pain and Uncertainty': The Gloomy Impact of the Pandemic on Sports Broadcasting". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  6. ^ "NWSL Announces 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup Presented by P&G and Secret Broadcast Talent". National Women's Soccer League. June 24, 2020. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
    "Broadcast Teams Announced For Week 1's Go90 Live Stream Games". National Women's Soccer League. April 14, 2017. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  7. ^ Murray, Nicholas (January 29, 2019). "Watts' Professional Ascent Mirrors USL Championship". USL Championship. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  8. ^ a b "USL Announces Broadcast Teams for USL Championship Final on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and SiriusXM Satellite Radio". USL Championship. October 31, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  9. ^ a b c Murray, Nicholas (May 3, 2017). "Watts Providing USL's Soundtrack". USL Championship. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  10. ^ "United Soccer League and SiriusXM Announce New Weekly Program". USL Championship. April 23, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  11. ^ "Bengals TV Broadcaster Makes NFL Debut Tonight". Cincinnati Bengals. August 9, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  12. ^ Vertelney, Seth (April 20, 2024). "Heroic NWSL announcer inserts dozens of Taylor Swift references into broadcast". Pro Soccer Wire. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
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