ESPN will launch a 30-to-45-day tryout period to determine a replacement for Molly Qerim on First Take, the network confirmed Thursday. During the window, a rotating slate of interim hosts will steer the program that features Stephen A. Smith. Qerim, who has anchored First Take since 2015 and appeared on Monday’s episode, announced on her Instagram Story that she is leaving the show after Sports Business Journal reported she would depart ESPN by year’s end.
Burke Magnus, ESPN’s president of content, told The Athletic that the replacement could come from inside ESPN or from outside the company. “I don’t know if it’ll be someone in-house or not,” Magnus said, acknowledging the timing of Qerim’s decision was unforeseen. He described a plan to use roughly 30 to 45 days to test a variety of in-house candidates on the show before making a final decision. “Then we’ll make a decision shortly after that.”
Magnus also noted that Qerim and ESPN were negotiating over roles beyond First Take, and that she wanted to explore other opportunities. “Molly Qerim is a wonderful person and an unbelievable teammate and colleague,” he said. “There was a couple dimensions to this. One, is obviously we were in a renewal conversation. Two, is 10 years to do something like that is a long time. I’m not going to speak for her, but I think there was a feeling that she wants to do other things, and successfully being on a top show like that for a decade qualifies as maybe I can turn the page and do something else. We tried to have her do other things and to redo that agreement. It honestly became less about that, and more about, in my opinion, her wanting to do other and explore other things. It ended up being easier for her to make a clean break entirely.”
Smith stepped in to host on Tuesday and will host through the end of the week, providing a live bridge between Qerim’s departure and the eventual selection of a permanent host. The interim period will be watched closely because First Take remains a marquee platform for sports opinion and debate.
The show has been a central part of ESPN’s morning lineup for years, and Qerim’s exit marks one of the sport network’s most high-profile desk changes in recent memory. Qerim’s Instagram post expressed gratitude for the decade at the desk and emphasized the relationships built with co-anchors, colleagues, and fans alike: hosting the show has been one of the greatest honors of her career, she said, and she thanked the audience for their support.
As ESPN proceeds with the 30- to 45-day trial, the network faces the challenge of preserving the dynamic that has made First Take a destination for sports discourse while evaluating whether to promote from within or pursue external options. The decision will hinge on finding a host who can carry the show’s blend of sports analysis, lively debate, and audience engagement, while fitting into the longstanding on-air partnerships that have defined the program.
