The Milwaukee Bucks, the 2021 NBA Championships, made history yet again on Wednesday, when they announced the hiring of Lisa Byington as the first female full-time play-by-by-play broadcaster for any major men’s professional sports team. The Bucks and Fiserv Forum President Peter Feigin announced in a press release, “Lisa’s extensive television broadcasting background, including her play-by-play work for high-level NCAA basketball on several national networks, makes her the perfect choice to take on this major role. While we appreciate the significance of selecting Lisa, and we celebrate this historic moment, Lisa earned this position based on her extraordinary skills and experience. We look forward to Lisa becoming the voice of the Bucks.”[1]
Byington is a trailblazer for women in sports broadcasting and is no stranger to making history in this industry. This past March, Byington became the first female play-by-play broadcaster to work the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. Back in 2017, she became the first female play-by-play voice for a college football game, and later that year, was also part of the MLS all-female broadcast team, a first of its kind in any major men’s professional sport.
Byington has quite the resume and has most recently worked the 2021 Olympic Games held in Tokyo as the men’s and women’s soccer play-by-play announcer. She also worked as a play-by-play announcer for the 2019 women’s World Cup. Byington also has experience working as a sideline reporter for the NCCA, the NBA, and the WNBA. [2]
Byington, a Michigan native, was two-sport athlete, playing soccer and basketball player at Northwestern University before beginning her career in broadcast for a local television station in Michigan. She quickly rose through the ranks and then accepted a job with Fox Sports, and then the Big Ten Network, where she has served as both a play-by-play announcer and a reporter for both soccer and basketball.
Byington certainly recognizes the impact of this history-making contract stating, “Finally, I understand the groundbreaking nature of this hire, and I appreciate the fact that during this process that aspect was addressed, but never made a primary focus. In fact, I applaud the Bucks for taking the first steps toward making hires like this more of the norm in the NBA. Because it’s time.”[3]
Congratulations to Lisa Byington for being the first, but certainly not the last!
Hannah is a 2L at Elon University School of Law and host of Podcast “Bars to the Bar” from Hoboken, New Jersey. Hannah graduated from Providence College where she was a four-year manager for the Men’s Basketball Team.
