Brett Favre’s weekly NFL show for SiriusXM has been put on hold, a company spokesman confirmed to Variety. It’s the latest business deal in jeopardy over the pro QB’s involvement in a welfare fraud case in Mississippi.
The SiriusXM rep declined to provide further comment. Favre, who retired from the NFL in 2010 after 20 years in the league, first began co-hosting the SiriusXM show in 2018. The former Green Bay Packers QB has appeared on “The SiriusXM Blitz With Brett Favre and Bruce Murray” on Tuesdays on the satellite radio and audio streamer’s services, most recently Sept. 13.
SiriusXM’s pausing of Favre’s show comes as ESPN Milwaukee said it was temporarily suspending the ex-football star’s weekly “The Brett Favre Show” recapping Packers games, NBC Sports reported.
Favre allegedly conspired with former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant to divert federal welfare funds toward the construction of a new $5 million-plus volleyball stadium at the University of Southern Mississippi. Favre is an alum of the university and his daughter played volleyball at the school. Favre has not been accused of breaking any laws and has denied any wrongdoing.
The FBI interviewed Favre over $1.1 million in speaking fees he received in 2017-18 for talks he allegedly didn’t deliver. Favre paid back the fees, which had come from federal welfare funds earmarked for low-income Mississippi families.
Text messages published earlier this month by Mississippi Today appear to show that Favre — together with Bryant; John Davis, former executive director of the Mississippi Department of Human Services; and nonprofit founder Nancy New — worked together to improperly divert state welfare funds. According to the texts, Favre asked New, “If you were to pay me is there any way the media can find out where it came from and how much?” (New responded, “No, we never had that information publicized.”)
On Thursday, Sept. 22, Davis pleaded guilty to both federal and state charges of embezzling federal welfare funds and conspiring to defraud the state, according to prosecutors.