Who says sports have to be a hobby? The world of sports is vast and powerful, check out some great places to start out in the industry.

Do you dream of becoming a professional basketball player? Are you looking for endorsement deals like Michael Phelps? Is Serena Williams on your top ten list to beat?

Not everyone can reach the pinnacle of their sport as a player. For example, there are more than a million high school football players every year. There is a maximum of 2,880 NFL players on the roster.

So where do you go to stay in sports if you don’t make the cut? There are more ways to make a sports career than to be a player. Some of them might surprise you! 

Read on to learn about sports jobs on and off the field.

Sports Jobs When You Aren’t a Player

Launch your golf career without being Michelle Wie or Tiger Woods. Behind every player, there is a whole slew of professionals working. Individuals in finance take care of player investments and money management. Attorneys handle contracts and managers negotiate deals.

There are public relations people, transportation and logistics, marketing executives and more. For those people who prefer working directly in their chosen sport, teaching and coaching are options. Supporting a competitive sailor, for example, takes a whole team.

Are you a writer? A statistician? A wheeler and dealer? The business side of sports might be perfect for you.

Think about other career paths that might interest you. There is sure to be a tie-in with your favorite sport.

Healthcare Careers

Some of the best jobs are in sports medicine. Specialized training and treatment of elite (or casual) athletes keep them in top physical shape. Professional training for medical personnel begins early in their education.

Personal trainers, exercise physiologists, and athletic trainers often begin training for their profession in their early college years. It is not unusual to see freshmen and sophomore assistants with their school team. The on-the-job experience combines with classroom work in physiology, anatomy and other studies. There are many online resources for those that find the class curriculum stuffy or hard to follow. You can learn about muscles, or dive deep into pretty much any anatomy and physiology related subjects on sites like Kenhub.

Doctors who specialize in sports medicine can be cardiologists, orthopedists, ophthalmologists or neurologists. There really aren’t many limits. Depending on your sport, you could be a veterinarian too.

Designing and Engineering Careers

If your passion is archery, sailing, golf or auto racing, it is easy to see how engineers tie into your sport. Architects and engineers create the stadiums and fields for play. They design the boats, lay out the golf courses and design the equipment.

Of course, skilled trades also have sports applications. Metallurgists, mechanics, electricians, tailors, and even blacksmiths have specialized tasks for sports. When was the last time you heard of a shoemaker?

Believe it or not, the sports world includes people who only make leather boots for skates. Similarly, there are talented tradespeople who custom make the equipment for different elite sports. You could be one of them!

Work In Sports

Sports jobs off the field far outnumber jobs as elite athletes.

Keep reading our website to enjoy the labor of our webmasters, reporters, photographers, and sales representatives. Their careers in professional basketball, hockey, boxing or baseball failed to materialize, but no one can claim that they aren’t still working in sports! 

Want to learn more about using your love of sports to build an income? Read more here.