RSL has a new radio broadcaster — with a familiar face
David "DJ" James will take over as the radio voice of Real Salt Lake, calling games for a myriad of stations under the RSL Radio Network.
SALT LAKE CITY — Even in the post-KMYU/local broadcast era ushered in by a league-wide streaming agreement with Apple TV, David James won’t go far from Real Salt Lake.
In fact, he’ll be in the next booth over this season.
James will be the primary voice of Real Salt Lake on the radio waves for the 2023 season, serving as the play-by-play broadcaster under the newly created RSL Radio Network under an agreement with KSL NewsRadio’s Bonneville International, the club announced Thursday.
The agreement, which takes the place of the club’s previous deal with ESPN 700 AM, ending an 18-season agreement between the two sides. While James will replace longtime radio host Bill Riley on the mic, the color analyst role will stay the same with former MLS goalkeeper Jay Nolly.
James and Nolly previous partnered on occasional television broadcasts on KMYU, when lead color analyst Brian Dunseth was unavailable (usually due to national television obligations).
“I am looking forward to a new opportunity this season calling RSL on radio, and am quite excited to see head coach Pablo Mastroeni’s vision for the Club continue to evolve this season,” James said. “I’m very happy to remain involved in bringing RSL soccer to the fans all over Utah and beyond, with the radio call requiring me to be more descriptive so that listeners can picture what is happening. This will certainly be a season worth following for the Claret-and-Cobalt.”
The agreement partners Real Salt Lake with the recently rebranded KSL Sports Zone (formerly Zone Sports Network), though calling it an arrangement with the radio home of the Utah Jazz and Utah State Aggies may be a bit of a misnomer.
Because of potential (and likely) scheduling conflicts involving the Jazz, Aggies and fellow Bonneville International-owned radio broadcasts at BYU football, RSL’s radio home may be a bit more fleeting. At times, fans may hear them on 1280 AM, while other matches be air on 97.5 FM or even 102.7 FM. All games will stream live on the KSL NewsRadio app.
Pregame and postgame will include longtime standing radio personalities Lauren Mason Beck and Spencer Warne, as well as newcomers Tom Hackett and Jake Hatch.
Where ever the radio commentary is broadcast, James and Nolly will also be available as a live option on every RSL home match under Apple TV’s home radio simulcast option on the Apple TV app. Fans can select the home radio broadcast as the audio option for every match during the 2023 MLS season; the away audio broadcast — including for RSL road matches — won’t be available immediately due to technical specifications involved with syncing up the audio and the video on-site.
Perhaps just as important, the radio broadcast will have a familiar voice to it.
“I’m extremely excited to remain a part of the club and make the transition to KSL Radio,” said Nolly, now in his eighth season calling RSL games for various broadcast mediums. “RSL was the team that drafted me, this club is very close to my heart; it’s home for my family and I am honored to stay close to the Club. I couldn’t be more excited for the season to kick off, especially in Vancouver, my second home.
“Every year I’ve been lucky to spend some time filling in on TV with David James – he is a gracious Play-by-Play partner – and I know we are going to have fun with the fans this year. RSL is a playoff contender, the team has been methodical with its additions, the growth of the core, and getting Damir back from injury will be critical to our attack.”
The arrangement will also bring weekly appearances by RSL manager Pablo Mastroeni on 1280 AM, either in interviews with James in the mornings or with other radio properties on the station, as well.
RSL Spanish-language radio will continue to be head on Alpha Media, KBMG Latino 106.3 FM, with Nelson Moran.