Starting as an intern for Channel Nine in the Newsroom, Danika Mason has now been appointed the new sports presenter for Channel Nine’s Today show.
With rumours swirling in early February 2025, according to New Idea, Roz Kelly was the front-runner for the role after Alex Cullen finished with the network.
Announced on February 28, Danika will be taking over the role.
“Bit of work news… very excited to be joining @thetodayshow team as Sports Presenter,” she shared.
“Can’t wait to be on the desk each morning to start the day. And I’ll still be with my @nrlonnine family too…. hosting Sunday afternoon footy and sideline on Thursday night.
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“Might need to purchase an alarm clock though ⏰ 😝”
We have put together everything to know about the 34-year-old.
WHO IS DANIKA MASON?
Growing up in Sydney’s north west, the 34-year-old has loved sport since a young age, playing netball, basketball, touch football and soccer.
Danika studied Engineering at University for three weeks, before realising that she wanted to pursue Journalism. She moved to Wollongong to study Journalism and Marketing before returning to Sydney where she now lives by the beach.
DANIKA MASON CAREER
Danika has been a part of the Nine team for over 10 years, having started as an Intern in 2012.
“I’m truly honoured and so excited to be joining Today,” Danika shared. “It’s been a dream of mine since I was a kid, waking up every morning to watch the show as I set my sights on a career in sports broadcasting.
“It’s also a full-circle moment for me at Nine because, just 10 years ago, my first-ever job at the network was producing sport for Today. I’m also very grateful that I’ll still be working with the Wide World of Sports crew on the footy every week throughout the NRL season.”
Already a familiar face for Nine viewers, Danika has featured on 9News, The Sunday Footy Show, NRL on Nine, and Wide World of Sports.
Rugby league coverage will still be worked on by Danika, including a refreshed Freddy and The Eighth with Brad Fittler and Andrew Johns which will move to television in 2025.
On February 28, her announcement was made during the show’s broadcast with Danika in Las Vegas and host Karl Stefanovic for the NRL.
The sports presenter shared that she was, “So excited for what’s to come.”
Steven Burling, the director of morning television shared, “Danika has filled in many times on Today and has a fantastic rapport with the entire hosting team. We’re pleased to see her bringing a wealth of experience and passion for sports to our viewers.”
Danika will be replacing Alex Cullen who was stood down from his role in January 2025, “Nine has agreed with Today presenter and journalist, Alex Cullen, that he will finish with the network following a review into a recent incident,” a Nine spokesperson told the ABC.
IS DANIKA MASON SINGLE?
Danika was engaged to Todd Liubinskas in 2023, a former rugby league and rugby union player.
The pair split three weeks before their wedding after a three-year relationship.
In October 2024, Danika was seen with NRL player, Liam Knight, with the pair confirming their relationship on Instagram.
Liam has gone on to share multiple cute snaps of the pair, with the most recent being on November 4, 2024 when they travelled to Sicily together.
The NRL player played for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, sharing on his Instagram in September 2024, “I want to say a huge thank you to all of the bulldogs faithful for welcoming me from day one. I loved every minute of being apart of this great club.
“The year didn’t go as planned for me but I was grateful to be able to be apart of a special year with this group. A big thank you to all of the players and coaches who made my time here so enjoyable, I love you all.”
