Tom Brady Gets Loudly Booed During His Broadcasting Debut
Tom Brady may have been feeling the love when he was inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame last week. But fans in St. Louis were decidedly less kind to the former star quarterback while making his Fox Sports broadcasting debut on Sunday.
The moment came as Brady was presenting the MVP Trophy to Birmingham Stallions quarterback Adrian Martinez during the 2024 UFL championship game at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis, MO, where the Stallions had just defeated the San Antonio Brahmas 25–0. "Tom Brady, this is one off the rare times you've been in a champagne bath and not been the guy receiving it," his NFL on Fox co-announcer Curt Menefee said, as the stadium erupted into a chorus of booing.
Loud boos for Tom Brady presenting the UFL Championship game MVP at the Dome in St. Louis. We haven’t forgotten about Spygate 20 years later #UFL pic.twitter.com/kC3BcOiCyp
— St. Louis Chatter (@RealSTLChatter) June 17, 2024
The bad blood between Brady and St. Louis dates all the way back to 2002, when Brady, then a wet-behind-the-ears 24-year-old rookie, led the Patriots to victory over the heavily favored St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI. When the Spygate scandal was exposed years later, The Boston Herald published allegations that the Patriots had videotaped the Rams' Super Bowl walkthrough practice.
The NFL conducted interviews and found no evidence to corroborate the claims, and the Herald later retracted the story. But it's clear that fans have not forgotten.
According to a 2022 New York Post report, Fox Sport shelled out a whopping $375 million for its 10-year deal with Brady to serve as the network’s No. 1 game analyst. His first game broadcasting for the NFL will be the Cleveland Browns vs. Dallas Cowboys game in Cleveland on Sept. 8, alongside lead play-by-play voice Kevin Burkhardt.
However, given the icy reception in St. Louis, Brady could certainly face more backlash in the months ahead, particularly in cities that were trounced by the Patriots over the course of Brady's six career Super Bowl titles with the team.