If you're both a freelance writer and a sports enthusiast, have you considered specializing in sports writing (or maybe writing the occasional article on the topic)? If so, this collection of sports writing markets is a place to start.
Sports writing markets can range from general publications that accept sports stories for a wide audience to highly-specialized ones focused on a particular sport. Let's look at some examples of where you can get paid to write about sports.
Sports Writing Markets
The following publications accept freelance stories related to sports.
Adventure Cycling
The Adventure Cycling blog accepts submissions of how-to articles, trip reports, bike overnights, and "inspiring, historical, or amusing stories" related to bicycle travel. Pay is $150-250 per article, with first-time writers paid on the lower end and repeat writers paid on the higher end.
Cross Country
Cross Country accepts freelance contributions of 1500-2000 words covering paragliding, hang gliding, paramotoring, speed riding / speed flying, miniwings, powered hang gliding, and related topics.
Defector
Defector is a subscription-based sports and culture website. They accept freelance pitches for stories covering "sports, politics, TV, movies, science, weird shit that happens on the internet, and anything else that catches [their] attention." According to their freelancer policies, they pay a minimum of $1000 for longer essays and a minimum of $500 for shorter pieces.
Gray's Sporting Journal
Gray's Sporting Journal accepts freelance submissions on sporting topics such as shooting / hunting and angling / fishing. They publish seven times per year, with four themed issues covering fly fishing, upland bird hunting, big game hunting, and their "Expeditions and Guides Annual." They're open to a wide range of word counts, but prefer shorter to too long (12,000 is okay if necessary, but 3000 is preferable, and 1500 words preferable even to that). In addition to articles and yarns (750-1500 word campfire tales -- can be factual or fiction), they also accept poetry up to 1000 words. They pay $600-1250 for features, $600 average for yarns, and $100 for poems. Longer "expeditions" travel pieces run 2500-3000 words and pay $850-1000 plus $75 for each picture published.
Gripped
Gripped magazine accepts columns and features on climbing. Features run 1500-2500 words and pay $250. Their Northern Faces and Area Profiles columns run 500-1000 words and pay $150.
Horse Community Journals
Horse Community Journals accepts freelance submissions for both print and online editions, including blogs. Topics they accept content on include training and horsemanship, horse health and care, stable management, and other related topics. Payments are negotiated on an individual basis.
Horse Illustrated
Horse Illustrated accepts submissions of 500-1200 words on topics such as horse training, horse health, trail riding, rider fitness, and more.
Paddling Magazine
Paddling Magazine is a biannual publication covering "the people, politics, expeditions, art, and boats and gears of paddlesports for kayakers, canoeists, whitewater boaters and standup paddleboarding enthusiasts." Features run 1500-3000 words, with shorter articles running 400-1000 words.
Runner's World
Runner's World magazine accept freelance submissions, with the best chance of acceptance in departments -- What it takes to..., Rave Run, and Life & Times. Writers should send spec pieces for consideration (not queries). Stories cover inspirational stories, first-person essays about running-related experiences, and details about awesome runs (locations, what you see, how long the run is, etc.).
Sport Fishing
Sport Fishing magazine publishes 9 issues per year and focuses on saltwater fishing mostly around North America. They accept features of 1800-2400 words, including sidebars, though their departments are usually staff-written. They pay $750 for print features. Digital features pay $200 for up to 1000 words and $300 for over 1000 words.
Sports Afield
Sports Afield is a magazine founded in 1887 covering high-end hunting and shooting, such as North American and African big game hunting. Most coverage is of big game hunting destination pieces. Features run up to 2500 words, though they accept 800-1200 word pieces for their Almanac section too (around conservation related subjects). Payment is on publication.
Sports Collectors Digest
Sports Collectors Digest covers sports card collecting, memorabilia, lithographs, autographs, and more. They accept 600-800 word profiles about "super" collectors and dealers, feature stories, and event coverage. They pay on publication.
The Sportster
The Sportster is a digital publication that primarily covers professional wrestling. They also publish stories related to MMA and boxing. They do pay for freelance contributions.
Trail Runner
Trail Runner accepts pitches from freelance writers. Pay starts at $200 for digital articles and $.25 / word for print submissions. Pay increases based on experience, sourcing, and thoroughness.
Trails Magazine
Trails Magazine is a quarterly print publication covering backpacking, bikepacking, canoe camping, mountaineering, and related topics focused on being "human-powered" and involving overnight outdoor sleeping. The publication focuses mostly on North American destinations. Features run 1000-5000 words and sometimes longer. Pay is $.50 - $2.00 per word depending on difficulty, experience, and commitment required. Shorter columns and rubrics pay $.50 per word. These shorter pieces include recipes, trip reports, essays, gear reviews, opinion pieces, and more.
Triathlete
Triathlete magazine features multi-sport training tips, nutrition articles, gear and apparel guides, athlete profiles, triathlon related travel articles, and news. They don't generally publish first-personal stories. Features run 800-1500 words and news runs 500-800 words. Payment is on publication.
More About These Sports Writing Markets
Like all specialized market posts on All Freelance Writing, this list of markets is pulled from the broader market database. That means this post will update automatically any time a market in the database is added, removed, or edited.
To make sure you don't miss new markets, or changes to existing markets (like increased pay rates), bookmark this page and check back periodically.
If you find a market on this list that's outdated or has a dead link, you can click "report link" below the listing. That will generate a pre-filled email. Send that to me (no need to add anything unless there are details you want me to know), and the listing will be reviewed sooner than it's currently scheduled to be checked again.
Please note: if a market lists specific submission periods during the year and it happens we're not in one, that's not a market error and shouldn't be reported. Only report broken links, markets where pay information has changed, markets that say they're permanently closed to submissions (not just a temporary break from submissions), or other significant changes. Thank you for helping to keep the market collection up-to-date.
Submit Your Sports Publication
Do you run a sports publication that hires freelance writers? Submit it (for free) and I'll consider adding it to the All Freelance Writing writers' markets database. If approved, your publication may also appear in specialized market list posts like this one automatically based on subject matter, pay rate, and whether it's a digital or print publication.
If sports writing isn't your thing, consider checking out All Freelance Writing's other specialized market lists, or browse the full writers' market database to find markets that are a better fit for you.
