Former College GameDay broadcaster Chris Fowler has no time to lie back and make the most of summer. The first game of the 2025 season is still two months away. But Fowler will be giving us play-by-play from Wimbledon, the biggest tennis event of the year. The ESPN broadcaster dabbles in both college football and tennis programming, having expertise in both arenas. Fowler will be covering the 3-week-long elite tournament, where the best players of the sport spar with each other. He also reunited with two tennis greats, who will also be in the press room with him.
Fowler was the man of the hour when ESPN branched into covering Wimbledon and the Grand Slam. He began calling matches for the former from 2012, which saw Roger Federer and Serena and Venus Williams (in doubles with Serena) as champions. Fowler will once again be giving us all the action from the court soon and will join the best of the best from the sport in that press room. Fowler shared a picture on his Instagram, along with former No. 1 legends John McEnroe and Chris Evert, who will be in attendance for the grand event.
“A privilege to reconnect with our #espntennis team,” Fowler wrote, along with the picture. Both McEnroe and Evert have won Wimbledon three times, once together in 1981. McEnroe joined ESPN in 2009, when the program first covered the US Open. Along with Fowler, McEnroe also covered Wimbledon for the network in 2012. Evert joined the room in 2012. Both commentators are legends of the tennis world, especially during the 70s and 80s. Evert holds the joint record of having the most US Open wins in the women’s singles, along with Serena Williams.
This year’s Wimbledon is jam-packed with action. Carlos Alcaraz returns as the back-to-back defending champion in the men’s singles. Fowler got things more exciting by having fans vote on whether the elite player will create a hat trick by winning this year’s edition as well. The broadcaster is all set to relay action from the high-intensity event, sharing visuals from their office, with a perfect view of the green court.
Chris Fowler’s association with ESPN goes way back
Fowler has been with ESPN for nearly 40 years, which is a great record. He was part of the core group that helped college football gain its current popularity. He and Kirk Herbstreit, his longtime friend and colleague, are credited as the most important people to begin a new period in CFB programming. Fowler worked with ABC for its Saturday Night Football show along with his fellow presenter. In College GameDay, the host was a constant face, sharing the floor with Lee Corso. The legendary host will retire later this year.
Fowler bid College GameDay goodbye in 2014, having been part of the show for 24 years. He was nominated for a Sports Emmy twice, in 2010 and 2024. Apart from calling games and analyzing players, Fowler is also most notably known for hosting the Heisman Trophy Award presentation since 1994. He was once in the bad books of the Vols fans for giving the Heisman to Charles Woodson instead of Manning family legend Peyton Manning in 1997. College GameDay avoided Rocky Top for quite some time after the incident. Chris Fowler remains one of CFB’s most loved presenters, nevertheless.
The man is a jack-of-all-trades, having also covered basketball and horse racing in his long-tenured career. Though Chris Fowler remains away from college football for now, he will still be part of some high-octane action at London, relaying it all to fans elsewhere.
The post ESPN’s Chris Fowler Sends Loving Message to John McEnroe & Chris Evert After Stepping Out of Football for Wimbledon appeared first on EssentiallySports.
