This is it.
Mike Francesa is retiring again from his daily WFAN show, he announced on Thursday’s program. Francesa, 66, will do his final half-hour show on Friday.
“I want to spend more time with my family,” Francesa said on the air Thursday.
He said it wasn’t a retirement. It seems conceivable he could do some WFAN guest shows, but Francesa, one half of the iconic “Mike & the Mad Dog” show, will no longer be on daily.
Francesa had previously retired at the end of 2017 before returning 4 ¹/₂ months later to take back his afternoon slot from the Carlin, Maggie & Bart show. His heart never seemed into it.
He said he only returned to begin what turned out to be an $8.99 per month app. The app was shut down a year after it started.
He then signed a new three-year contract with FAN, but his one-hour Radio.com show was seldom listened to and his half-hour FAN program did not make much sense as a concept.
Now, he will call it a daily career on Friday. This time it will be final.
“Mike has been the heart of WFAN for over 30 years, and though his day in and day out presence has come to an end, that bond happily will continue,” said Chris Oliviero, an Entercom senior vice president who oversees WFAN. “He has earned the right to make this very personal decision and will always have our respect, support and appreciation. The future of WFAN as the premiere sports platform in New York is bright, and that is in large part to the foundation that Mike has helped build.”