Charissa Thompson is the host of FOX NFL KICKOFF, the Sunday morning NFL pregame show leading into FOX NFL SUNDAY.
Enjoying the prime of an improbable career that began as an assistant in the FOX Sports human resources department in 2006, Thompson has been one of the faces of FS1 since the network launched in August 2013.
A Seattle native who attended the University of California-Santa Barbara, Thompson moved to Los Angeles following graduation to accept a position in the human resources department at FOX Sports. After completing her daily duties in HR during the standard workday, she made her way into the network's highlights department for a crash course in cutting and organizing game clips and logging video tape. Discovering an interest in TV production, she applied for and received a production assistant position at FOX Sports Net Rocky Mountain in 2007. While in Denver, she was given her first on-air opportunity as a fill-in host for the channel's Saturday evening Colorado Rockies all-access show. Showing an almost instant comfort level in front of the camera, Thompson was approached by FOX executives about a role on the network's nationally syndicated program "Best Damn Sports Show Period" that was filmed in Los Angeles. For the next two years, she served as a regular host on the show, while also making spot appearances as a sideline reporter for both FOX NFL and Big Ten Network.
