Substack CEO: No Deal With The Ringer, Even as Talent Flocks to Platform
Zach Lowe is the latest Ringer talent to launch a Substack newsletter.
Four prominent former and current Ringer employees have launched their own Substack newsletters in recent weeks, sparking speculation about a formal partnership between the media company and the subscription publishing network. However, Substack's CEO Hamish McKenzie has confirmed that no such deal exists, stating on X, "We didn't pay them anything and there’s no special deal."
McKenzie believes that the move to create independent Substacks is a "very good idea." Substack CEO McKenzie is the first to publicly address the situation, as all the involved talent and The Ringer's parent company Spotify have remained silent on the speculation of a business relationship. The launch of these Substacks has left many wondering about the future of The Ringer's website and its editorial direction.
Three of the four newsletter creators – Bryan Curtis, Zach Lowe, and Tom Pelissero – have not written for The Ringer since joining the company in 2025 and 2026, respectively. Sean Fennessey, the fourth creator, has not written for The Ringer since 2021. NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay has been publishing his own newsletter on Beehiiv since 2024.
Founded in 2015 by former ESPN columnist Bill Simmons, The Ringer shifted towards audio and video content in recent years, even agreeing to license several podcasts exclusively to Netflix. While The Ringer employs around two dozen staff writers, only a few articles are published daily on its website. The presence of four key Ringer figures on Substack has raised questions about why they're not contributing to The Ringer's website directly.
The Ringer has not commented on the situation. Substack has had a distribution agreement with Spotify since early 2024, which is visible on Curtis's Substack, and subscribing to Fennessey's newsletter also generates revenue for Spotify. Several sports properties, including NASCAR, regularly publish content on Substack, and the platform has hired heads of sports partnerships for the US and UK markets in 2026.
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