Charissa Thompson Talks 'Unprecedented Opportunity' Hosting 'Thursday Night Football' (Exclusive)
Charissa Thompson will be part of history on Thursday as she will host Thursday Night Football on Prime Video. It's the first time the NFL will air games exclusively through streaming, and Thompson will get fans ready by hosting the pregame, halftime, and postgame show with Tony Gonzalez, Richard Sherman, and Ryan Fitzpatrick. In an exclusive interview with PopCulture.com, Thompson explained how thankful she is to have this opportunity.
"It's an unprecedented opportunity for me," Thompson exclusively told PopCulture. "I feel so, so, so lucky. I don't know. Maybe I was good in my past life that I got rewarded with this unprecedented position of Prime Video, the first ever streamer to obtain NFL rights and have a full season in the NFL. And a sign of many things to come. Of course, the landscape of what Prime Video has been able to do in so many different areas."
Thompson continued: "It's humbling to be a part of something that is a launch. I had the privilege of doing this when I worked at the Big 10 Network and when Fox Sports launched their cable entity, FS1. So it's a massive undertaking. And also, there's the growing pains of whenever you start something new, but there's also an incredible opportunity that you get to say, hey, we've never done this before. So being a part of something that is a first is really an honor."
Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit will call the game each week, and Thompson, who is also the host of Fox NFL Kickoff, is ready to work with two of the top broadcasters in football. "Being and starting in something like this with Prime Video's Thursday Night Football package, and being able to just even be in the same room with Al Michaels. I mean, he is football," Thompson explained.
"I've always wanted to be a sports broadcaster from the time when I was 11 years old. I made a little video and pretended to interview my brother. And he was Jay Buhner because I was a Mariners fan. So I am someone that has always loved sports. And Al Michaels is football. And so for him, and then, of course, Kirk in the college space, and so that connection there. And just it's really, really special. And I feel lucky every single day that I get an opportunity to do this job."
Along with her work on Thursday Night Football, Thompson is helping one lucky fan win a trip to Super Bowl LVII. She has partnered with Smirnoff to help recruit the Cocktail Coordinator, which is also called the Best Job In America. Fans can apply for the job at BestJobInAmerica.Smirnoff.com and will need to upload a video of their game-winning cocktail recipe using Smirnoff vodka.
"Smirnoff has always been an incredible partner and they are the partner of the NFL in the vodka space," Thompson said. "And it makes total sense for me, just as someone who enjoys a cocktail herself. In fact, the cocktail I enjoy the most is the one that Anthony Anderson came up with, him and I together, called sweet victory. It's light and refreshing, it's Smirnoff, elderflower, lemon juice, club soda, and a splash of cranberry. So it's a cocktail that you can enjoy year-round."