Stephanie Medina (left) and Courtney Stockmal (right) are the directors of FOX NFL Sunday and FOX ... [+] NFL Kickoff, respectively.

Unique among NFL pregame shows, FOX Sports’ FOX NFL Sunday and FOX NFL Kickoff both feature women directors.

“The fact that there are two of us now at FOX,” Stephanie Medina said, “I take pride in it — period — and I do know that it’s probably been a little bit harder for me as a woman.”

Medina is entering her 11th year as director of FOX NFL Sunday, the pregame show that airs from 12 pm to 1 pm EST. Courtney Stockmal directs the hour-long preceding show, FOX NFL Kickoff, which she has done for four years.

Although there are other female directors on NFL shows, those programs are either during the week or after the game (as is the case with Sara Reis on NFL Network’s NFL GameDay Highlights).

Medina and Stockmal are the lone female directors in the coveted Sunday pregame space.

On those pregame shows, directors and producers work in concert.

While the producer is in charge of the overall vision of the show, the director is responsible for what the viewer sees and hears in the moment, including which cameras, camera positions, audio and stats-laden graphics to implement.

Medina has specialized in selecting camera angles to capture listening shots. Instead of just focusing on Terry Bradshaw making a joke, she makes sure viewers will see Howie Long’s reaction as he laughs with — or at — him.

In part due to that talent’s rapport with each other, FOX NFL Sunday has been the No. 1 rated NFL pregame show for a whopping 28 years.

And FOX NFL Kickoff averaged more than a million viewers in 2021.

Because of Medina and Stockmal’s unique perch on those shows, they are frequently approached for mentorship by aspiring women — and also men.

“I want to help everyone that I can,” Stockmal said.

Stockmal and Medina actually worked together in 2014 when Stockmal was one of Medina’s associate directors on FOX NFL Sunday. Stockmal praised Medina’s knowledge and leadership, and the two formed a bond during road trips as part of the broadcast.

“It’s just kind of a different camaraderie when it’s female,” Medina said, “because in that particular environment there’s not a lot of us.”

Stockmal has thrived on the road, helping spearhead the challenging World Cup shows from distant locations.

Back in the Los Angeles headquarters, FOX NFL Sunday will feature a brand-new, two-story set for its 29th year that has 5,130 square feet of LED wall and floor panels. It will provide a larger and more realistic feel than the miniature football field FOX previously used.

The new screens have augmented reality capabilities. So Michael Strahan can remain in Los Angeles but look like he’s on the 50-yard-line of snowy Lambeau Field.

“Nobody’s really doing it in live TV,” said Bill Richards, executive producer of FOX NFL Sunday. “The LED stuff just takes it to another level.”

FOX will incorporate that technology in a year in which it is broadcasting the Super Bowl.

The network is slated to televise several more Super Bowls as part of the new TV deal that goes into effect next year and lasts until 2033. Through paying about $2.2 billion annually, FOX will have the rights to NFC games, something it has had since 1994, when FOX NFL Sunday debuted.

FOX NFL Kickoff is a more recent addition, having started on FS1 in 2013 and moved to FOX in 2015.

Anchoring that show is Charissa Thompson. Thus, FOX NFL Kickoff is directed and hosted by women.

Thompson serves as the show’s traffic cop while creating a fun and conversational tone.

“Charissa is unlike any other host I’ve ever worked with,” Stockmal said. “She has enough of a personality where you’re invested and you like her, but she doesn’t try to take over the show. She lets the personalities on the screen next to her — the football players — shine.”

Stockmal likes the adrenaline rush of being part of live television, and both Stockmal and Medina cited the enjoyment of being part of a team.

The producer is like the head coach of that team, and Medina attributed much of her success to Richards, who gave her a shot that led to her 20-year career at FOX.

Once they were given opportunities, both Medina and Stockmal worked their way to the top of their field.

“It’s not lost on me that we’re both women doing a male sport in a male-dominated industry,” Stockmal said. “But it’s not something I focus on … It’s more I try to show my work ethic and that I’m deserving just like everyone else.”