On this day (October 6) in 2011, ESPN announced that Hank Williams Jr’s “All My Rowdy Friends Are Here on Monday Night” would no longer be the theme of Monday Night Football. The song served as the weekly rallying cry for NFL fans across the United States for two decades. However, after Williams went on a politically-charged tirade during a live TV appearance, the network chose to end their partnership.
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“All My Rowdy Friends Are Here on Monday Night” was the Monday Night Football theme from 1989 until 2011. In that time, it brought Williams four consecutive Emmy Awards for Best Composed Theme between 1991 and 1994. More than that, it put his voice in households across the nation every Monday night. However, that all came to a screeching halt when Williams appeared on an episode of Fox and Friends.
During the appearance, one of the hosts asked for his opinion on an ongoing Republican race. He replied that he didn’t like anyone in the race, calling the “golf summit” in which then-Speaker of the House John Boehner played a round of golf with then-President Barack Obama and VP Joe Biden. “C’mon! That’d be like Hitler playing golf with Netanyahu,” he said. “They’re the enemy,” he said, referring to Obama and Biden.
ESPN Drops Hank Williams Jr.
Before the October 3 game between Indianapolis and Tampa Bay, the network shared a statement with its viewers. “While Hank Williams Jr. is not an ESPN employee, we recognize that he is closely linked to our company through the open to Monday Night Football. We are extremely disappointed with his comments, and, as a result, we have decided to pull the open from tonight’s telecast.”
On October 6, 2011, ESPN released a statement that read, in part, “We have decided to part ways with Hank Williams Jr.” The network added, “We appreciate his contributions over the past years. The success of Monday Night Football has always been about the games, and that will continue.”
Later, Williams released a statement on his website. He accused ESPN of infringing on his First Amendment rights and claimed that the choice to pull the song was his idea.
In 2017, ESPN and Williams came to an agreement, and “All My Rowdy Friends” opened Monday Night Football once again. Then, in 2020, they dropped the theme again.
Featured Image by Jeff Hahne/Getty Images
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