2026 is on its way, but for those watching ESPN’s New Year’s Eve broadcast, it seemed to start out on an awkward note. Sports Center broadcaster Scott Van Pelt watched footage of couples ringing in the new year by locking lips. “Yeah… Live makeouts on SportsCenter. Get into it,” he said as men and women were shown kissing each other. His reaction tempered, however, when two men were shown kissing. “Ohhhhhhhh! What are we … What do we got …. We got love in the air!” Van Pelt said awkwardly, raising his arms in the air and acting elated. Video of Van Pelt’s reaction went viral, with it being seen over 7 million times on X.

Writing for Outkick, Zach Dean called Van Pelt “a pretty down-the-middle guy” and lauded Van Pelt’s reaction and recovery. “He’s a consummate professional, and he managed to not puke at the site of two guys tonguing each other at midnight,” wrote Dean. “What a moment for Scott. Probably the biggest moment of his career, and he managed to walk the line and save it at the end.” Dean stated he wasn’t sure if Van Pelt was “disgusted” by the kiss but affirmed that his reaction was normal for a man. “We’re going to be slightly taken aback when we see two guys kissing in the wild. It’s just how we’re going to react. That doesn’t mean we hate it. It doesn’t mean Scott hated it. He might, I don’t know. But, it certainly means we’re going to be stunned by it.”

Pro-LGBTQ+ outlet Out Sports defended Van Pelt, accusing conservatives of being “obsessed” over the kiss. “I am giving Van Pelt the benefit of the doubt and don’t think there was any homophobic intent. Why? Because I watched the kiss live on CNN and had a similar reaction as a gay man, which was ‘woah!’” wrote contributor Jim Buzinski. “Meaning, I was surprised in a good way to see two guys kiss on TV and thought it was awesome that it aired.” He accused those who claimed Van Pelt was “disgusted” were “projecting their feelings onto the moment.”

Van Pelt received more support on social media. “Scott Van Pelt is all of us,” wrote NFL Updates on X. “Scott Van Pelt even had the natural ‘ick’ instinct of the gay guys kissing at the #hello26 NYC New Years party. Hopefully he isn’t fired tomorrow by woke ABC,” wrote Nathan Brewer. Currently, Van Pelt has made no statement on his reaction.