Matt Cord returning as Philadelphia 76ers public address announcer

PHILADELPHIA - Six months after announcing his retirement, longtime Sixers public address announcer Matt Cord says he will return for at least one more season behind the mic at Xfinity Mobile Arena. 

Matt Cord returns from retirement

What we know:

Cord stepped away from his role as public address announcer at the Xfinity Mobile Arena at the end of last season, calling the job "a privilege" in a retirement post on X.

"I've had the best seat in the house announcing for the best fans in the world," Cord, who spent 28 seasons behind the mic, wrote.

Six months later, Cord appeared on 93.3 WMMR's Preston and Steve's hit with Good Day Philadelphia to announce that he will return for what promises to be an exciting season for the Sixers.

Why did Matt Cord come out of retirement?

What they're saying:

As any basketball fan could guess, Cord said the Sixers' offseason additions of LeBron James and Jaylen Brown motivated him to delay his retirement for at least one more season.

"When I retired, I wanted to retire, I wanted to have more time for myself," Cord said. "Then [the Sixers] made a trade for Jaylen Brown on July 1 and my phone started blowing up a little, and then on July 24 LeBron James signed with the Sixers and my phone just blew up like crazy."

With excitement abound, Cord received calls to delay his retirement so he could be part of the Sixers season. One such call came from Allen Iverson, who Cord says texted him, "I think you got one more left in ya." 

The Sixers never found a replacement for Cord during his six-month retirement. He will play a role in finding the next voice of the Xfinity Mobile Arena.

"I'm just humbled by the amount of people who have reached out," Cord said. "Everywhere we went this summer was like, strangers saying ‘you coming back!?’ and it's just….I'm honored."

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