• Loading stock data...
Saturday, August 2, 2025
Tuned In returns to NYC on September 16. Hear from the biggest names in sports media. Click here to get your spot

New York Times Disbands Sports Department 

  • No layoffs are expected as journalists will move to other departments at The Times instead.
  • There was overlap among the NYT sports department following its $550M acquisition of The Athletic last year.
The New York Times disbands sports section.
Wire Photo Archives

The New York Times is disbanding its sports department, a team of more than 35 journalists and editors. For both online and print, the paper will instead rely on sports coverage from The Athletic, which the New York Times bought for $550 million in January 2022.

The decision from The Times marks “an evolution in how we cover sports,” executive editor Joe Kahn and deputy managing editor Monica Drake wrote in an email Monday to staffers.

Members of the New York Times Guild said in a statement late Monday afternoon they “will fight this flagrant attempt at union-busting with every tool we have.”

“Times leadership is attempting to outsource union jobs on our sports desk to a non-union Times subsidiary under the preposterous argument that The Times can ‘subcontract’ its sports coverage to itself,” the statement NYT Guild members read.

“Management gave the Guild virtually no notice of this change. Many members learned of the company’s decision in a Times news alert that popped up on our phones minutes into a meeting called to inform sports staff of our department’s dissolution.”

No layoffs are planned for the Times, as employees from its sports department will instead move to other departments at the company. 

“We plan to focus even more directly on distinctive, high-impact news and enterprise journalism about how sports intersect with money, power, culture, politics and society at large,” the editors wrote in an internal email. “At the same time, we will scale back the newsroom’s coverage of games, players, teams and leagues.”

The Athletic laid off about 20 journalists last month to reorganize its newsroom. The Athletic is not unionized, but a union represents the Times’ newsroom. The New York Times publisher A.G Sulzberger and CEO Meredith Kopit Levien said Monday that since its acquisition 18 months ago, The Athletic has had “meaningful growth” in terms of “audience, revenue and number of subscribers with paid access.”

“We intend to utilize The Athletic — which has among the largest sports newsrooms in the world — to provide Times readers with a greater abundance of sports coverage than ever before,” said Sulzberger and Levien. “Under our plan, the digital homepage, newsletters, social feeds, the sports landing page and the print section will draw from even more of the approximately 150 stories The Athletic produces each day chronicling leagues, teams and players across the United States and around the globe.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Coco Gauff at New York Liberty

How the New York Liberty Became the Hottest Ticket in Town

Once banished to the burbs, the Libs are now Brooklyn’s marquee attraction.
Las Vegas sign

College Sports Embracing Vegas After Years of Cold Shoulder

The Big Ten became the latest newcomer to Sin City.
2000, Jupiter, FL, USA; FILE PHOTO; Montreal Expos pitcher Hideki Irabu in action on the mound against the New York Mets at Roger Dean Stadium during Spring Training

Dead Sports Franchises Are Alive and Well on Twitter

The Expos, Sonics, and Whalers have active social media accounts.
Limited Hype

Sneaker Reselling Was Once Easy Money. Success Is Now Complicated

Vendors need to evolve what they’re selling and how they do it.

Featured Today

Ryan Field Construction
exclusive
July 19, 2025

First Look Inside Northwestern’s $862 Million New Ryan Field

Five big things FOS learned on our exclusive stadium tour.
Jul 21, 2024; Ayrshire, SCT; Xander Schauffele celebrates with Claret Jug after winning the Open Championship golf tournament at Royal Troon.
July 17, 2025

The Boozy History and Traditions of The Open’s Claret Jug

The Open awards the world’s most famous wine decanter.
2025 PDC World Darts Championship Final - Luke Littler vs Michael Van Gerwen
July 16, 2025

A Teen Darts Prodigy Is Becoming Bigger Than the Game Itself

Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler is cashing in on his devastatingly accurate shot.
Jul 15, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) reacts to the crowd as they take on the Connecticut Sun in the first quarter at TD Garden.

WNBA Viewership Up Across All Networks Compared to 2024

Non-Fever games are up 37% compared to the full 2024 season.
Jul 27, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Sky guard Kia Nurse (11) drives to the basket against Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham (8) during the second half at United Center.
July 29, 2025

Fever-Sky Draws 1.5M Viewers Despite Clark, Reese Absences

Clark and Reese both missed the game due to injury.
NASCAR Cup Series driver Bubba Wallace (23) celebrates winning Sunday, July 27, 2025, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
July 30, 2025

Amazon, TNT Post Near-Identical NASCAR Ratings in Debut Season

The cable channel is a new media-rights partner this season.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

Dealmaker Jeffrey Kaplan maps the evolution of sports as an asset class
July 29, 2025

WBD Restructuring Shows What’s Old Is New Again

WBD will become Warner Bros. and Discovery Global as two separate entities.
July 24, 2025

CBS Sports to Get New Owner As Skydance Merger Clears FCC Hurdle

The long-awaited, but highly debated, merger gains regulatory approval.
Dec 7, 2024; New York, New York, USA; A general view of Times Square during the MLS Cup Times Square Watch Party prior to the game between the LA Galaxy and the New York Red Bulls.
July 24, 2025

MLS Reveals Apple TV Streaming Numbers, Raising Questions

The league gives a rare glimpse inside the high-profile streaming pact.
A Peacock sideline reporter holds a microphone with the NBC Peacock logo during Michigan State's football game against Washington on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing.
July 24, 2025

‘Unusual’: NBCU’s Surprise Interest in a New Cable Sports Network

Its previous channel NBCSN was shuttered less than four years ago.