The signing of the current collaborator of RTVE was already known, but it remained to be resolved what her role in the lineup would be: the network has finally opted to make her a presenter. La Séptima continues to show its cards before starting to broadcast. Sarah Santaolalla will have her own program on the new open television channel that José Miguel Contreras is preparing for November 5.
The news is exclusively revealed this Sunday by verTele, the specialized section of elDiario.es. According to their information, the network has finished confirming that Santaolalla will not join only as an analyst or panelist, but as the presenter of one of the spaces with which La Séptima will build its first lineup.
The move represents a new leap for a communicator who in recent years has gained presence in the current affairs and debate programs of RTVE, Cuatro, and other networks.
The news is not the signing: it is that she will have her own program. The arrival of Sarah Santaolalla at La Séptima had been on the table for weeks.
José Miguel Contreras already acknowledged on July 30 in an interview with EFE that the communicator was among the people with whom the project was having advanced conversations, although he then avoided specifying the role she would have.
A few days later, Confidencial Digital reported that the signing was closed and explained that the strongest option was to entrust her with the presentation of a format, although the network was still studying other possibilities: making her a permanent collaborator or combining both functions.
It is there where the news of this August 30 lies. According to the exclusive from verTele/elDiario.es, La Séptima has already resolved that debate and has decided to give Santaolalla her own program.
What Sarah Santaolalla's program will be like
The format is still in the development phase.
According to information from verTele, the idea that La Séptima is working on is to build a space that brings together different profiles and that takes advantage of Santaolalla's style to incorporate a younger and more informal tone into the lineup.
The network has not yet detailed whether it will be a strictly political program, a current affairs magazine, or a hybrid format.
This nuance is relevant because La Séptima has defined from the beginning a project with a lot of weight on live information, analysis, interviews, politics, economics, and entertainment. Contreras himself has argued that he wants to take advantage of a space that he still considers free within Spanish general television.
Is Sarah Santaolalla leaving RTVE?
It is currently the big unknown of the hiring.
Santaolalla has become a regular presence on RTVE since 2025. She has collaborated on programs like Mañaneros 360 and Malas lenguas and has participated in different current affairs spaces of the Corporation.
That she is going to present a program on La Séptima does not allow us to conclude yet that she is going to disappear from RTVE.
According to verTele, the managers of the new channel have not established a common exclusivity rule for all their presenters and collaborators. Each case is negotiated individually.
There are already two different models within the staff itself.
Javier Ruiz did leave Mañaneros 360 to join the new project as one of its main faces and take on editorial responsibilities. Alba Carrillo, on the other hand, will combine her incorporation to La Séptima with El Sótano Club, which she presents on Ten.
Who is Sarah Santaolalla
Sarah Santaolalla is 27 years old and is a lawyer, communicator, and political analyst.
Her first jobs in the media were linked to university radio, and she began to appear on television when she was just over 20 years old. She went through 7NN and Canal Red before expanding her presence on generalist channels.
Later, she participated in programs on Cuatro like Cuatro al día, Todo es mentira, and En boca de todos. She also made appearances on Espejo Público, from Antena 3.
Her greatest exposure came with RTVE. During 2025 and 2026, she became one of the regular collaborators of its current affairs programs, especially on Mañaneros 360 and Malas lenguas.
So far, her television career had fundamentally developed around analysis and discussion. La Séptima offers her for the first time the possibility of stably taking on the hosting of her own format.
From Javier Ruiz to Sarah Santaolalla: this is how La Séptima stands
The hiring adds to a list that has quickly grown during August.
Javier Ruiz was the first major impactful incorporation. The journalist left RTVE after presenting Mañaneros 360, and La Séptima positioned him as one of the central names of its new project.
Then Rocío Delgado arrived.
The network later announced Alba Carrillo and Marta Márquez, who will share Fuera de control, one of the first programs whose title is already known.
Héctor de Miguel, Quequé, later confirmed his return to the media with the new channel after having temporarily retired and leaving Hora Veintipico on Cadena SER. His signing was officially announced by La Séptima during August.
The next addition was Luján Argüelles. The Asturian presenter will be in charge of a magazine show on weekend mornings, one of the few spaces in the future programming whose slot has already been revealed.
The team known so far combines current affairs journalists, entertainment presenters, comedians, and profiles linked to political analysis, a mix consistent with Contreras' declared intention to build a generalist television and not exclusively informative.
What is La Séptima TV and when does it start broadcasting
La Séptima is the new national free-to-air channel that obtained one of the new state licenses for DTT.
Its premiere is scheduled for November 5, 2026. One of the key names is José Miguel Contreras.
The journalist and audiovisual entrepreneur participated in the founding of Globomedia, was Programming Director of Canal+ Spain, went through Telemadrid, and became in 2006 one of the main promoters of laSexta, a channel of which he was CEO until its integration with Antena 3.
Two decades later, he returns to participate in the launch of a national television from scratch.
The channel estimates an initial investment of between 20 and 25 million euros and aims to compete especially in the field of current affairs, live broadcasting, and general entertainment.
The schedule will be known before the premiere
There are still many pieces to place.
La Séptima plans to officially present its programming and a good part of its team before the November launch. The FesTVal de Vitoria is listed as one of the chosen venues to publicly showcase the project.