Matt Cord is putting retirement on hold and coming back for his 29th season as the Sixers’ public address announcer.
Cord said Wednesday morning on 93.3 WMMR that he had planned to step away after last season, but the team’s offseason pulled him back in.
“The reasons were quite simple.
"They made a trade for Jaylen Brown on July 1," Cord said. "...And then on July 24, LeBron James signed with the Sixers."
Cord said Allen Iverson was among the people who reached out over the summer urging him to return to the microphone.
His retirement talk had seemed final after the Sixers were knocked out by the New York Knicks in the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs. At that point, Cord said he had made peace with walking away and wanted to “go out on top.”
But the Sixers’ summer changed everything, starting with the stunning trade for Brown and followed by the signing of James, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
The reaction to Cord’s retirement announcement last season showed just how much he has meant to the franchise. He described being overwhelmed by the response in April, when it looked like his final weeks on the job were winding down.
"I didn't expect this much at all, and it means so much," Cord told PhillyVoice in April. "Everybody wants to matter in their jobs.
No matter what you do for a living, you want to kind of matter. And it made me realize, like, 'Wow, I kind of mattered to this job.'
It's been neat. It's been neat.
I'm blessed."
After months of thinking it over, Cord decided the voice fans have associated with Sixers games should be the one introducing James, Brown and the 2026-27 team as it chases a championship.
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