Which Sports Broadcasters Have The Highest Annual Salary? Tom Brady, Charles Barkley Top The List

Shaquille O’Neal made headlines this past week when he signed a new contract with TNT. The 52-year-old former NBA legend will earn over $15 million per year on his new deal as Inside The NBA continues to roll on, but he is still well behind some of the most notable names in the business when it comes to average annual salary.

Which Sports Broadcasters Have The Highest Annual Salary?

Tom Brady is of course the big bread winner when it comes to broadcasting contracts. The greatest-of-all-time quarterback signed a gaudy 10 year, $375 million contract ahead of last NFL season to be a color analyst for FOX, which is the largest contract ever handed down to a sports media talent. Brady’s $37.5 million per year earnings are nearly twice as much as the second person on the list, with Charles Barkley earning $21 million annually.

The top of the list has some seriously heavy hitters to go along with Brady and Barkley. ESPN’s Stephen A Smith takes home an estimated $20 million per year, with Troy Aikman and Tony Romo not far behind at $18 million apiece. Pat McAfee earns roughly $17 million, and Joe Buck brings in about the same number that Shaq will see with his new salary.

Top Reported Sports Broadcaster, Analyst Annual Salaries

Tom Brady, $37.5M
Charles Barkley, $21M
Stephen A. Smith, $20M
Troy Aikman, $18M
Tony Romo, $18M
Pat McAfee, $17M
Shaquille O’Neal, $15M+
Joe Buck, $15Mhttps://t.co/UsupJdBWrR

— Spotrac (@spotrac) February 15, 2025

The landscape of NBA broadcasting is set to change drastically in 2025 and 2026 with the new TV deals in place. It was thought that Inside The NBA was coming up on its final days, but TNT is set to license their award-winning show to ESPN for the foreseeable future, which will keep the most popular sports talk show on the air and available to the masses.

NBC and Amazon are getting into the game, too. Both are currently acquiring talent for their analysis shows, with guys list Carmelo Anthony and Reggie Miller poised to receive contract offers in the coming months. But even with all the new faces that the new broadcast partners will bring, the top of the list of the highest broadcast salary numbers will likely remain the same, with the heavy-hitters dominating the money.

The package deal between Disney (ESPN & ABC), NBC, and Amazon will cost a combined $77 billion over the next 11 years for rights to broadcast NBA action.