Stephen A. Smith reveals Donald Trump ran for president to get revenge for failed purchase of an NFL team

Stephen A. Smith is an iconic voice in the world of sport but he may soon be looking to expand his enormous public presence even further.

The host of ESPN’s ‘First Take’ has shifted his sights into politics in recent months, saying that he has “no choice” but to consider a run of president. Those comments were made on an appearance on ABC News’ ‘This Week’ but it’s not the first time that he has had a brush with politics.

Last year Smith was on “Club Random with Bill Maher” and he revealed a conversation that he had with President Donald Trump back in 2014, before he had officially announced his intention to run for the White House. Smith claimed that a failed attempt to buy the Buffalo Bills sparked his run for the presidency.

“He called me in 2014. This is a true story,” Smith explained. “He says, ‘Stephen A’ — he had a secretary — ‘Mr. Trump is on the line,’ etcetera. [Trump] gets on the line. He says, ‘Stephen A., I’m trying to buy the Buffalo Bills.’ Price tag was $1.4 billion.”

“He had about $1.1 billion. I was being told he wasn’t gonna get the team,” he continued. “He said, ‘Stephen A., if these motherf**kers get in my way’ — talking about the NFL owners — “these motherf**kers get in my way, I’m gonna get them all back. I’m gonna run for president.’ That’s what he said!”

More than a decade on, Trump has made good on that promise, twice. But did he get his own back on the NFL owners?

Smith claimed that Trump used the office of the president to “hijak” the conversation around the Colin Kaepernick protest “just to get the owners back.” Still early in Trump’s first term in office the Kaepernick controversy sparked a wave of protests, typically involving kneeling during the national anthem.

Rather than attempt to ease the tensions and seek to find a compromise in a delicate situation, Trump appeared at a rally in Alabama in 2017 and issued a threat towards Kaepernick and other players protesting peacefully.

“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out! He’s fired. He’s fired!’” Trump said.

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