CHRIS Matthews will continue to play “Hardball” with MSNBC for another seven years.

Matthews, the high-decibel host of “Hardball,” inked a new deal yesterday to continue hosting the show and anchoring MSNBC’s coverage of the 2002, 2004 and “subsequent” elections through 2009.

Matthews will also host an NBC-produced syndicated show, “The Chris Matthews Show,” slated to debut this fall.

“Hardball,” which began airing on MSNBC in November 1999, is the network’s highest-rated show.

It originally debuted on CNBC in 1997, and will continue airing on both CNBC and MSNBC until July 15 – when it moves exclusively to MSNBC.

“Hardball” will also move to a new 9 p.m. timeslot on MSNBC to make way for Phil Donahue’s new talk show, airing at 8 p.m.