Shannon Sharpe Will 'Step Aside' From ESPN Amid $50 Million Sexual Assault Lawsuit

Former football star and media personality Shannon Sharpe said he will be stepping away from his position at ESPN amid a lawsuit that accuses him of sexual assault.

The lawsuit, filed Sunday in Nevada, alleges Sharpe assaulted a woman identified only as Jane Doe in late 2024 and early 2025 while the two were in a relationship. She is seeking $50 million in damages.

“The relationship in question was 100% consensual,” Sharpe said in a statement on Thursday. “At this junction I am eliciting to step aside temporarily from my ESPN duties. I will be devoting my time to my family, and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me.”

In a statement, ESPN said it agreed with Sharpe’s decision.

“This is a serious situation, and we agree with Shannon’s decision to step away.”

The woman said she was 20 when she first met Sharpe at a Los Angeles gym in 2023. The lawsuit said the two had a “rocky consensual relationship” for nearly two years that turned “abusive.”

In one instance, the lawsuit alleges Sharpe forced the woman into a car and forced her to give him oral sex before anally raping her. In January, Sharpe allegedly sexually assaulted the woman without a condom, according to the lawsuit.

In his statement, Sharpe said he plans to return to ESPN at the start of the NFL preseason.

“I sincerely appreciate the overwhelming and ongoing support I have received from my family, friends and colleagues,” he said.

CORRECTION: This story has been amended to correct the period the alleged assaults were said to take place.