ESPN’s ‘Monday Night Football’ Debuts New Anthem

ESPN’s Monday Night Football debuted a new anthem for the 2023 NFL season. ESPN revealed a new music video that features a reimagined “In the Air Tonight” performed by eight-time Grammy Award winner Chirs Stapleton, hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg and drummer Cindy Blackman Santana. The song was originally performed by Phil Collins and it’s one of his best hits. Additionally, Monday Night Football has kept the “Heavy Action” theme music. Fans will continue to hear the instrumental following the new open and leading into the call of the game. 

The new anthem comes months after Stapleton performed the national anthem at the Super Bowl. During the performance, Philadelphia Eagles coach Nick Sirianni was seen crying, and he explained why he got emotional. “This is what you dream of, being in this moment,” he said, per Fox News. “It’s just emotional because there’s a lot of work, not just by myself, but a lot of people. Starting with my wife and my kids, my brothers, my dad and just so many people…” He continued, “It’s just emotional in that moment knowing where we were.”

Snoop Dogg has always been a big supporter of the NFL. In 2022, Snoop Dogg performed at the Super Bowl halftime show with Dr. Drew, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar. Before the performance, Snoop Dogg talked about how excited he was to be part of the show. 

“I’m not going to understand it until it happens,” he told the Associated Press, per the New York Post. “While it’s happening, I’m in the zone. I’m stuck to the script, laser-focused, being on point, sounding good, looking good and feeling good. I want to give off a great presentation. After the fact, it’s when I’ll be nervous about watching it to see what the reaction is. But while I’m going through it, it’s nothing.”  

The new anthem is all part of Monday Night Football’s new look for the new season. ESPN Creative Studio developed a brand enhancement across the main telecast, Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli (ManningCast) and Monday Night Countdown. The brand includes a new music theme, logo identity, score bug and animation among others.