audience to listen to the game of their choice on either 660 AM or 101.9 FM. The simulcast splits became more regular in 2019 after WCBS (AM) began carrying Mets radio broadcasts. WFAN has marketed itself in recent years as the "Flagship Station for New York Sports." In previous years, Yankees managers (more recently, Aaron Boone) and a member of the Giants (such as, in the past, former quarterback Eli Manning) have made exclusive appearances on WFAN during their respective baseball and football seasons. The station was the longtime radio home for the Devils, Mets, New York Jets, New York Rangers and New York Knicks (the latter two were inherited from WNBC while the Jets coverage was moved from WCBS). Currently, WFAN's primary competition is WEPN-FM, the New York ESPN Radio affiliate which now carries the Jets, Knicks and Rangers plus national ESPN Radio programming, all of which WFAN previously broadcast. During the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, WFAN broadcast New York Islanders games produced by Hofstra University-owned WRHU in Hempstead. Beginning in 2018-19 both the Devils and Islanders moved their broadcasts to the Radio.com platform, though WFAN is expected to broadcast a limited number of Devils contests. The station also carried matches of New York City FC during its inaugural 2015 season. In 2022, the station became the home for Rutgers Scarlet Knights football, replacing longtime flagship station WOR. Due to MLB and NFL blackout rules, WFAN is only allowed to air sporting events involving the New York-area teams within its home market; therefore, stations that carry WFAN on a HD radio subchannel are required to broadcast alternate programming in its place. Influence of sports format WFAN's success—especially after the 1988 frequency switch—proved that sports-talk radio could in fact be a steadily profitable and popular format. This in turn fueled the explosive growth of sports-talk radio in the 1990s and 2000s (decade). Once a novelty, every major market (and many smaller markets) now has at least one sports radio station, and often more. ESPN Radio, Fox Sports Radio and Yahoo! Sports Radio have all launched 24-hour national sports talk radio networks, while NBC Sports Radio and CBS Sports Radio (the latter of which WFAN will be a member) debuted in fall 2012. There are also nationally syndicated radio shows, such as The Jim Rome Show and 2 Live Stews. Additionally there are dedicated sports radio streams on satellite radio, such