You're stuck in traffic. It’s 8:20 PM on a Monday, the rain is starting to smear across your windshield, and the flickering taillights in front of you aren't moving. You know the game just kicked off. You can almost hear the crowd noise in your head, but your dashboard is silent. Finding the Monday night football radio station shouldn't feel like solving a cold case, yet every year, fans scramble to remember which frequency carries the national broadcast and which one is just local sports talk.
It’s frustrating.
The reality is that national radio rights for the NFL are a bit of a jigsaw puzzle. While your local team usually has its own flagship station, the big national window—the one featuring Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on the TV side—is a whole different animal on the airwaves. For decades, Westwood One Sports has held the exclusive national radio rights for Monday Night Football. If you are looking for the "official" voice of the game across the entire country, that is your North Star. But how you actually get that signal into your ears depends entirely on where you’re sitting and what kind of hardware you’ve got in your hand.
The Westwood One Network and Your Local Dial
Westwood One is the king here. They distribute the game to hundreds of local affiliates across the United States. This means that while Westwood One produces the broadcast, you won’t find a station called "Westwood One Radio" on your car's scan tool. Instead, you're looking for the local AM or FM station in your town that has paid for the rights to syndication.
In big markets, this is usually pretty straightforward. If you’re in New York, you’re likely hitting up WFAN. In Los Angeles, it might be KSPN. But things get weird when you’re driving through rural areas or mid-sized cities. Sometimes a classic rock station picks up the feed because the local sports talk station is already committed to a high school basketball game or a local MLB broadcast.
The easiest way to find your local spot is the Westwood One Station Finder. It’s a simple tool on their website where you plug in your zip code. Honestly, it’s a lifesaver when you’re on a road trip. Just remember that AM signals carry further but sound like they’re being broadcast from a tin can underwater, while FM sounds great but cuts out the second you drive behind a moderately sized hill.
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Streaming the Game: When the Antenna Fails
If your car doesn't have a working radio or you're sitting in an office where signal penetration is non-existent, streaming is the move. But there’s a catch. You can’t just go to any radio station’s website and click "Listen Live."
Due to strict NFL blackout rules and digital rights, many local stations are forced to "black out" the NFL feed on their web stream. You’ll be listening to a local host talk about trade rumors while the actual game is happening on the terrestrial airwaves. It’s annoying. To get around this, you basically have three reliable digital paths.
First, there is NFL+. This is the league’s own subscription service. It’s replaced the old Game Pass and gives you access to live local and primetime games on your phone or tablet. The audio side is actually quite robust; you can usually choose between the national Westwood One feed, the home team’s local broadcast, or the away team’s crew. If you’re a die-hard who wants to hear your specific team's announcers—the guys who actually know the third-string linebacker’s backstory—this is the best way to do it.
Then you have SiriusXM. If you have a satellite radio subscription, Monday Night Football is always there. Usually, the national broadcast is on Channel 88 (NFL Radio), but they also dedicate specific channels to the home and away feeds. The beauty of SiriusXM is the lack of "dead zones." You can drive from Maine to California without ever touching the dial.
Lastly, WestwoodOneSports.com often streams the audio for free, but this is sometimes restricted to desktop users or specific mobile browsers. They’ve tightened the belt on this over the last few years to push people toward paid apps.
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Why the Radio Broadcast Hits Different
There is a specific art to radio play-by-play that TV just doesn't need. On TV, the announcer can stop talking for ten seconds and let the picture tell the story. On the Monday night football radio station, silence is the enemy. Kevin Harlan, who has been a staple of the Westwood One MNF broadcast for years, is a master of this.
Harlan describes the jersey colors, the way the shadows are falling across the 40-yard line, and the exact trajectory of a spiral. He makes you see the game. Listening to a master like Harlan or Ian Eagle is often more exciting than watching the game on a muted TV at a loud bar. You get the nuance. You get the energy. And honestly, the radio commercials for male pattern baldness and heavy-duty pickup trucks are a nostalgic vibe all their own.
The Problem with Delays
One thing you've gotta watch out for is the "spoiler effect." If you are listening to the game on a digital stream while following a live box score on your phone or participating in a group chat, the radio feed will almost certainly be 30 to 60 seconds behind the real-time action.
There is nothing worse than seeing "TOUCHDOWN" pop up on your fantasy football app while the radio announcer is still describing the huddle. If you want true real-time audio, a physical AM/FM radio is the only way to go. Digital packets take time to travel; radio waves move at the speed of light.
International Listeners and Niche Options
What if you're not in the States? The NFL has been aggressive about expanding, but radio rights abroad are a patchwork. In the UK, talkSPORT often carries the primetime games. In other regions, the NFL Game Pass (International) via DAZN is the primary way to get audio.
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For those who are tech-savvy, sometimes you can find the broadcast through the TuneIn Radio app. However, TuneIn has increasingly moved NFL content behind a "Premium" paywall. It used to be the "wild west" where you could just search for a random affiliate in Ohio and listen for free, but the NFL’s legal team is very good at their jobs. Most of those loopholes have been closed.
Identifying the National Talent
Knowing who you’re listening to helps you find the right vibe. Westwood One typically has a rotating cast of analysts. You might hear Hall of Famer Kurt Warner or Mike Mayock providing the color commentary. These guys are professionals. They don't have the luxury of telestrators, so they have to be incredibly precise with their language.
If you hear a broadcast where the announcers sound like they’re cheering for one team, you’ve likely stumbled onto a local affiliate feed rather than the national Westwood One broadcast. Local feeds are great for fans of those specific teams, but they can be a bit biased if you’re just a neutral observer looking for an objective take.
How to Set Yourself Up Before Kickoff
Don't wait until the ball is in the air to find your station. Here is the move:
- Scan the AM band first. Most dedicated sports stations still live on the AM dial between 560 and 1600.
- Download the provider apps early. If you’re going the digital route, have NFL+ or SiriusXM signed in and ready.
- Check the affiliate list. Bookmark the Westwood One affiliate map on your phone's browser so you can quickly see which local FM station has the game if you're traveling.
- Check your car's HD Radio. If you have a newer vehicle, many FM stations have "HD2" or "HD3" sub-channels that carry sports talk or national feeds that aren't on the primary frequency.
Finding the Monday night football radio station is mostly about preparation. Once you have your local frequency dialed in or your app buffered, there is something uniquely "American" about hearing the roar of the crowd through a speaker while you're navigating the dark highways of a Monday night.
Next Steps for Tonight's Game:
If you are currently looking for the game, start by scanning the AM dial for your local ESPN Radio or Fox Sports Radio affiliate. If that fails, open your mobile browser and head to the Westwood One Sports website to use their station finder tool. For those on the move, ensure your NFL+ subscription is active or tune your satellite radio to Channel 88. Turn the volume up, stay in the right lane, and enjoy the call.