Sports Management Degree Overview

A degree in sports management teaches students how to apply business, coaching and physical education principles to athletes, academic institutions, major league and minor league professional sports teams, independent sports confederations, sporting goods companies or independent sports marketing and management consulting firms. The sports industry offers employment opportunities for management, marketing, and supervisory professionals at all levels of competition. Since sports management is an intensely competitive career field, work experience and a degree in sports management is required for entry into this field. Most sports management professionals have to start with non-paid internships or low-level jobs to gain experience and work their way up to the more-glamorous positions. While sports management can be a very exciting and rewarding career, it also can be a very challenging and competitive experience. Sports management professionals need to possess sharp negotiating skills, good political instincts, an overwhelming desire to succeed and a willingness to travel and work long hours. Graduates with sports management degrees have several career options including the management of professional, semi-professional or local teams, sports medicine, sports promotion and marketing or even assistants to managers, clubs or sports organizations.

Sports Management Degrees

Sports management degree programs are offered at certificates, associates, bachelors, masters and doctoral levels. The sports management degree programs typically include courses in physical education, sports medicine, marketing and sales, sports management theory, human behavior and motivation, coaching, ethical issues and responsibilities of managers and coaches, facility and event management, legal aspects related to the sports industry, organizational administration and evaluation as well as overall business management. The business management courses typically include accounting, sales, marketing, basic management, business law, economics, human resources, history, business communications, natural sciences and financial management. Networking, communication skills, decision-making strategies and team building are also taught throughout the program. Students are also usually expected to participate in an internship during the program to gain real life experience and in-house training.

Sports Management Career Opportunities

Graduates may pursue entry-level sport management positions in promotions, sales, marketing, ethics, law, communications, management, journalism, private and public recreation, event and facilities management, or other areas. Eventually, with experience, they can advance to top managerial positions. Possible careers for sports management majors include positions as collegiate sports information directors, sport facility managers, sporting goods and apparel retail store managers, sport organization events coordinators, sports commission executive directors, sport licensing company vice presidents, marketing and promotions directors, sporting goods sales representatives, corporate sales directors, director of ticket sales, intramural director of campus recreations, facilities coordinators, athletic directors, public relations managers for athletes, compliance directors, athletic business managers, community sport program directors and professional sports team managers. Development and promotion directors are hired by sports teams and school athletic programs to design and implement promotional campaigns that will increase ticket sales. Sports information directors act as a liaison between teams and athletic departments and the media, and are sometimes responsible for developing materials (websites, programs, etc.) that provide information about the team. Athletic directors and general managers coordinate the activities of teams and athletic departments, and are responsible for personnel decisions involving coaches, athletes and support staff. Sports agents or representatives provide a variety of services to athletes and coaches, such as negotiating playing or coaching contracts, coordinating product endorsement fees and providing financial, investment or tax advice. The amount of money to be made in sports management varies widely according to the level of competition and the value of the teams or athletes involved.

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