| Sports Illustrated | |
| Editor Title: | Co-editors in chief |
| Frequency: | Monthly (2020–present) Biweekly (2018–20) Weekly (1954–2018) |
| Total Circulation: | 1,618,476[1] |
| Circulation Year: | Dec 2020 |
| Category: | Sports magazine |
| Company: | Authentic Brands Group |
| Publisher: | Minute Media (brand licensee) |
| Country: | United States |
| Based: | New York City |
| Language: | English |
| Issn: | 0038-822X |
Sports Illustrated (SI) is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twice. It is also known for its annual swimsuit issue, which has been published since 1964, and has spawned other complementary media works and products.
Owned until 2018 by Time Inc., it was sold to Authentic Brands Group (ABG) following the sale of Time Inc. to Meredith Corporation. The Arena Group (formerly theMaven, Inc.) was subsequently awarded a 10-year license to operate the Sports Illustrated–branded editorial operations, while ABG licenses the brand for other non-editorial ventures and products. In January 2024, The Arena Group missed a quarterly licensing payment, leading ABG to terminate the company's license. Arena, in turn, laid off the publication's editorial staff.[2]
In March 2024, ABG licensed the publishing rights to Minute Media in a 10-year deal, jointly announcing that the print and digital editions would be revived by rehiring some of the editorial staff.[3]
In May 2024, Sports Illustrated failed to deliver a print copy of the publication for the month to its subscribers for the first time in the magazine's 70-year history, according to the New York Post’s Josh Kosman (May 17, 2024).
There were two previous magazines named Sports Illustrated before the current magazine was launched on August 9, 1954.[4] In 1936, Stuart Scheftel created Sports Illustrated with a target market of sportsmen. He published the magazine monthly from 1936 to 1942. The magazine focused on golf, tennis, and skiing with articles on the major sports. He then sold the name to Dell Publications, which released Sports Illustrated in 1949 and this version lasted six issues before closing. Dell's version focused on major sports (baseball, basketball, boxing) and competed on magazine racks against Sports and other monthly sports magazines. During the 1940s, these magazines were monthly, which prevented them from cover current events. There was no large-base, general, weekly sports magazine with a national following on actual active events. It was then that Time patriarch Henry Luce began considering whether his company should attempt to fill that gap. At the time, many believed sports was beneath the attention of serious journalism and did not think sports news could fill a weekly magazine, especially during the winter. A number of advisers to Luce, including Life magazine's Ernest Havemann, tried to kill the idea, but Luce, who was not a sports fan, decided the time was right.[5]
Luce and editors of the planned magazine met in 1954 at Pine Lakes Country Club, the oldest golf course in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The course's pro shop has a plaque mentioning the meetings, and the plaque also states that the first issue was given to the course. It is on display there. Myrtle Beach Area Golf Course Owners Association executive director Tracy Conner credits the magazine with making Myrtle Beach a golf destination.[6]
Many at Time-Life scoffed at Luce's idea; in his Pulitzer Prize–winning biography, Luce and His Empire, W. A. Swanberg wrote that the company's intellectuals dubbed the proposed magazine "Muscle", "Jockstrap", and "Sweat Socks". Launched on August 9, 1954, it was not profitable (and would not be for 12 years)[7] and not particularly well-run at first, but Luce's timing was good. The popularity of spectator sports in the United States was about to explode, and that popularity came to be driven largely by three things: economic prosperity, television, and Sports Illustrated.[8]
The early issues of the magazine seemed caught between two opposing views of its audience. Much of the subject matter was directed at upper-class activities such as yachting, polo and safaris, but upscale would-be advertisers were unconvinced that sports fans were a significant part of their market.[9]
In 1965, offset printing began. This allowed the color pages of the magazine to be printed overnight, not only producing crisper and brighter images, but also finally enabling the editors to merge the best color with the latest news. By 1967, the magazine was printing 200 pages of "fast color" a year; in 1983, SI became the first American full-color newsweekly. An intense rivalry developed between photographers, particularly Walter Iooss and Neil Leifer, to get a decisive cover shot that would be on newsstands and in mailboxes only a few days later.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, during Gilbert Rogin's term as Managing Editor, the feature stories of Frank Deford became the magazine's anchor. "Bonus pieces" on Pete Rozelle, Woody Hayes, Bear Bryant, Howard Cosell and others became some of the most quoted sources about these figures, and Deford established a reputation as one of the best writers of the time.[10]
After more than a decade of steady losses, the magazine's fortunes finally turned around in the 1960s when Andre Laguerre became its managing editor. A European correspondent for Time, Inc., who later became chief of the Time-Life news bureaux in Paris and London (for a time he ran both simultaneously), Laguerre attracted Henry Luce's attention in 1956 with his singular coverage of the Winter Olympic Games in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, which became the core of SIs coverage of those games. In May 1956, Luce brought Laguerre to New York to become the assistant managing editor of the magazine. He was named managing editor in 1960, and he more than doubled the circulation by instituting a system of departmental editors, redesigning the internal format,[11] and inaugurating the unprecedented use in a news magazine of full-color photographic coverage of the week's sports events. He was also one of the first to sense the rise of national interest in professional football.[12]
Laguerre also instituted the innovative concept of one long story at the end of every issue, which he called the "bonus piece". These well-written, in-depth articles helped to distinguish Sports Illustrated from other sports publications, and helped launch the careers of such legendary writers as Frank Deford, who in March 2010 wrote of Laguerre, "He smoked cigars and drank Scotch and made the sun move across the heavens ... His genius as an editor was that he made you want to please him, but he wanted you to do that by writing in your own distinct way."[13]
Laguerre is also credited with the conception and creation of the annual Swimsuit Issue, which quickly became, and remains, the most popular issue each year.
In 1986, co-owned property HBO/Cannon Video had inked a pact to produce video versions of the magazine for $20 on the sell-through market, running just 30–45 minutes on the tape.[14]
In 1990, Time Inc. merged with Warner Communications to form the media conglomerate Time Warner. In 2014, Time Inc. was spun off from Time Warner.
In 2018, the magazine was sold to Meredith Corporation by means of its acquisition of parent company Time Inc.. Meredith, however, planned to sell Sports Illustrated due to not aligning with its lifestyle properties.[15] Authentic Brands Group announced its intent to acquire Sports Illustrated for $110 million the next year, stating that it would leverage its brand and other assets for new opportunities that "stay close to the DNA and the heritage of the brand." Upon the announcement, Meredith would enter into a licensing agreement to continue as publisher of the Sports Illustrated editorial operations for at least the next two years.[16] [17] In June 2019, the rights to publish the Sports Illustrated editorial operations were licensed to the digital media company theMaven, Inc. under a 10-year contract, with Ross Levinsohn as CEO. The company had backed a bid by Junior Bridgeman to acquire SI.[18] [19] In preparation for the closure of the sale to ABG and Maven,[20] The Wall Street Journal reported that there would be Sports Illustrated employee layoffs,[21] which was confirmed after the acquisition had closed.[22]
In October 2019, editor-in-chief Chris Stone stepped down.[23] Later that month, Sports Illustrated announced its hiring of veteran college sports writer Pat Forde.[24] In January 2020, it announced an editorial partnership with The Hockey News, focusing on syndication of NHL-related coverage.[25] [26] In 2021, it announced a similar partnership with Morning Read for golf coverage, with its website being merged into that of Sports Illustrated.[27] It also partnered with iHeartMedia to distribute and co-produce podcasts.[28]
In September 2021, Maven, now known as The Arena Group, acquired the New Jersey-based sports news website The Spun, which would integrate into Sports Illustrated.[29] In 2022, ABG announced several non-editorial ventures involving the Sports Illustrated brand, including an apparel line for JCPenney "inspired by iconic moments in sports" (it was not the brand's first foray into clothing, as it launched a branded swimsuit line in conjunction with its Swimsuit Issue in 2018),[30] and resort hotels in Orlando and Punta Cana.[31] In September 2023, it delved deeper into the resort world through a new partnership with Travel + Leisure.[32]
On November 27, 2023, Futurism published an article alleging that Sports Illustrated was publishing AI-generated articles credited to authors who were also AI-generated; the latter practice apparently extended to their profile photos, which the website alleged were sourced from online marketplaces selling such photos.[33] After Futurism reached out to The Arena Group, the magazine purportedly removed some of the implicated writers and republished their articles under other AI-generated authors with notes disclaiming its staff's involvement.[34] [35] In response to the report, a spokesperson for Sports Illustrated claimed that the affected articles were product reviews written without the involvement of AI by AdVon Commerce, a third-party company who they claimed used pseudonyms to "protect author privacy" and had already severed ties with; meanwhile, writers and editors at the magazine sharply criticized the alleged practices.
On January 5, 2024, The Arena Group missed a $3.75 million quarterly licensing payment to Authentic Brands Group.[36] Two weeks later, on January 19, Authentic Brands Group terminated its licensing agreement. As a result, The Arena Group fought back by announcing that it would lay off the entire Sports Illustrated staff.[37] In March 2024, Authentic Brands Group licensed the publishing rights to Minute Media in a 10-year deal, jointly announcing that the print and digital editions would be revived by rehiring some of the editorial staff.
In 1956, Sports Illustrated began presenting annual awards to fashion or clothing designers who had excelled in the field of sportswear/activewear. The first ASDAs of 1956, presented to Claire McCardell with a separate Designer of the Year award to Rudi Gernreich, were chosen following a vote of 200 American top retailers.[38] The following year, the voting pool had increased to 400 fashion industry experts, including Dorothy Shaver and Stanley Marcus, when Sydney Wragge and Bill Atkinson received the awards.[39] The Italian designer Emilio Pucci was the first non-American to receive the award in 1961.[40] The awards were presented up until at least 1963, when Marc Bohan received the prize.[41] Other winners include Jeanne S. Campbell, Bonnie Cashin, and Rose Marie Reid who formed the first all-women winning group in 1958.[42]
Maya Moore of the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx was the inaugural winner of the award in 2017.[43]
See main article: Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year. Since 1954, Sports Illustrated has annually presented the Sportsperson of the Year award to "the athlete or team whose performance that year most embodies the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement."[44] [45] Roger Bannister won the first-ever Sportsman of the Year award thanks to his record-breaking time of 3:59.4 for a mile, the first-ever time a mile had been run under four minutes.[44] [46] Both men and women have won the award, originally called "Sportsman of the Year" and renamed "Sportswoman of the Year" or "Sportswomen of the Year" when applicable; it is currently known as "Sportsperson of the Year."
The 2017 winners of the award are Houston Texans defensive end J. J. Watt and Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve.[47] Both athletes were recognized for their efforts in helping rebuild the city of Houston following Hurricane Harvey in addition to Altuve being a part of the Astros team that won the franchise's first World Series in 2017.[48]
The 2018 winners are the Golden State Warriors as a team for winning their third NBA Title in four years.[49]
The 2021 winner is Tom Brady for his Super Bowl 55 win.[50]
The 2023 winner is Deion Sanders for his coaching of the football team at the University of Colorado Boulder.[51]
In 1999, Sports Illustrated named Muhammad Ali the Sportsman of the Century at the Sports Illustrateds 20th Century Sports Awards in New York City's Madison Square Garden.[52]
In 2015, the magazine renamed its Sportsman Legacy Award to the Sports Illustrateds Muhammad Ali Legacy Award. The annual award was originally created in 2008 and honors former "sports figures who embody the ideals of sportsmanship, leadership and philanthropy as vehicles for changing the world." Ali first appeared on the magazine's cover in 1963 and went on to be featured on numerous covers during his storied career. His widow, Lonnie Ali, is consulted when choosing a recipient.[53] In 2017, football quarterback Colin Kaepernick was honored with the Award, which was presented by Beyoncé.[54] In 2018, WWE professional wrestler John Cena was honored with the award.[55]
See main article: List of 2009 all-decade Sports Illustrated awards and honors.
For a 2002 list of the top 200 Division I sports colleges in the U.S., see footnote.[57]
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018[58] | Daniel Bryan | ||||||||||
| 2019[59] | Nick Gage |
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018[60] | Jordynne Grace | |||||||||
| 2019[61] | Mercedes Martinez |
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017[62] | Keith Lee | |||||||||
| 2020[63] | Eddie Kingston | |||||||||
| 2021[64] | Jonathan Gresham | |||||||||
| 2022[65] | Masha Slamovich | |||||||||
| 2023[66] | Rhea Ripley | MJF | Trinity | Seth Rollins | Tetsuya Naito | Swerve Strickland | Gunther | Becky Lynch |
The following list contains the athletes with most covers.[67]
The magazine's cover is the basis of a sports myth known as the Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx.
Most covers by athlete, 1954–2016
| Athlete | Sport | Number of covers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Jordan | Basketball | 50 | |
| Muhammad Ali | Boxing | 40 | |
| LeBron James | Basketball | 25 | |
| Tiger Woods | Golf | 24 | |
| Magic Johnson | Basketball | 23 | |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Basketball | 22 | |
| Tom Brady | Football | 20 |
Most covers by team, 1954 – May 2008
| Team | Sport | Number of covers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Lakers | Basketball | 67 | |
| New York Yankees | Baseball | 65 | |
| St. Louis Cardinals | Baseball | 49 | |
| Dallas Cowboys | Football | 48 | |
| Boston Red Sox | Baseball | 46 | |
| Chicago Bulls | Basketball | 45 | |
| Boston Celtics | Basketball | 44 | |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | Baseball | 40 | |
| Cincinnati Reds | Baseball | 37 | |
| San Francisco 49ers | Football | 33 |
Most covers by sport, 1954–2009
| Sport | Number of covers | |
|---|---|---|
| Baseball-MLB | 628 | |
| Pro Football-NFL | 550 | |
| Pro Basketball-NBA | 325 | |
| College Football | 202 | |
| College Basketball | 181 | |
| Golf | 155 | |
| Boxing | 134 | |
| Ice hockey | 100 | |
| Track and Field | 99 | |
| Tennis | 78 |
Celebrities on the cover, 1954–2010
| Celebrity | Year | Special notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Cooper | 1959 | Scuba diving | |
| Bob Hope | 1963 | Owner of Cleveland Indians | |
| Shirley MacLaine | 1964 | Promoting the film John Goldfarb, Please Come Home! | |
| Steve McQueen | 1971 | Riding a motorcycle | |
| Burt Reynolds and Kris Kristofferson | 1977 | Promoting the film Semi-Tough | |
| Big Bird | 1977 | On the cover with Mark Fidrych | |
| Arnold Schwarzenegger | 1987 | Caption on cover was Softies | |
| Chris Rock | 2000 | Wearing Los Angeles Dodgers hat | |
| Stephen Colbert | 2009 | Caption: Stephen Colbert and his Nation save the Olympics | |
| Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale | 2010 | Promoting the film The Fighter | |
| Brad Pitt | 2011 | Promoting the film Moneyball |
| Father | Son(s) | |
|---|---|---|
| Archie Manning | Peyton & Eli Manning | |
| Calvin Hill | Grant Hill | |
| Bobby Hull | Brett Hull | |
| Bill Walton | Luke Walton | |
| Jack Nicklaus | Gary Nicklaus | |
| Phil Simms | Chris Simms | |
| Dale Earnhardt | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | |
| Cal Ripken Sr. | Cal Ripken Jr. & Billy Ripken | |
| Mark McGwire | Matt McGwire | |
| Drew Brees | Baylen Brees | |
| Boomer Esiason | Gunnar Esiason | |
| Chuck Liddell | Cade Liddell |
Presidents who have been featured on the cover
| President | SI cover date | Special notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John F. Kennedy | December 26, 1960 | First Lady Jackie Kennedy also on cover and Kennedy was President-Elect at the time of the cover. | |
| Gerald Ford | July 8, 1974 | Cover came one month before President Richard Nixon announced he would resign from the Presidency. | |
| Ronald Reagan | November 26, 1984 | On cover with Georgetown Hoyas basketball coach John Thompson and Patrick Ewing | |
| Ronald Reagan | February 16, 1987 | On cover with America's Cup champion Dennis Conner | |
| Bill Clinton | March 21, 1994 | On cover about the Arkansas college basketball team |
Tribute covers (In Memoriam)
| Athlete | SI cover date | Special notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Len Bias | June 30, 1986 | Died of a cocaine overdose just after being drafted by the Boston Celtics | |
| Arthur Ashe | February 15, 1993 | Tennis great and former US Open champion who died from AIDS after a blood transfusion | |
| Reggie Lewis | August 9, 1993 | Celtics player who died due to a heart defect | |
| Mickey Mantle | August 21, 1995 | Died after years of battling alcoholism | |
| Walter Payton | November 8, 1999 | Died from rare liver disorder | |
| Dale Earnhardt | February 26, 2001 | Died in a crash on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. | |
| Brittanie Cecil | April 1, 2002 | Fan killed as the result of being struck with a puck to the head while in the crowd at a Columbus Blue Jackets game | |
| Ted Williams | July 15, 2002 | Boston Red Sox great who died of cardiac arrest | |
| Johnny Unitas | September 23, 2002 | Baltimore Colts great who died from heart attack | |
| Pat Tillman | May 3, 2004 | Arizona Cardinals player turned U.S. soldier who was killed in a friendly fire incident in Afghanistan. | |
| Ed Thomas | July 6, 2009 | Parkersburg, Iowa, high school football coach who was gunned down by one of his former players on the morning of June 24, 2009. | |
| John Wooden | June 14, 2010 | UCLA basketball coaching legend who died of natural causes at 99 years of age. | |
| Junior Seau | May 2, 2012 | Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker who committed suicide at 43 years of age |
Sports Illustrated has helped launched a number of related publishing ventures, including: