• Loading stock data...
Thursday, September 4, 2025
Fox Analyst and Media Entrepreneur Greg Olsen to Speak at Tuned In Get your ticket now!

New York Times Experiences Growing Pains With The Athletic

  • The Athletic lost $6.8 million in the first two months since it was acquired by The New York Times.
  • The Times paid $550 million to acquire the sports subscription site earlier this year.
New York Times
Jens Schott Knudsen

As expected, The Athletic has brought subscriber growth to The New York Times — at a fairly significant cost.

The sports news site lost $6.8 million in February and March after the $550 million acquisition closed earlier this year, which led The Times Company’s first-quarter adjusted operating profits, reported Wednesday, to dip 10.5% to $60.9 million. Operating profits were $68.1 million in the same quarter a year ago.

Making The Athletic Profitable  

The Times inched closer to its goal of 15 million subscribers by the close of 2027 as the 1.1 million Athletic subscribers boosted its paid-subscriber count to 9.1 million, according to the company. 

  • The Athletic was founded in 2016 with an ad-free subscription model. Meredith Kopit Levien, president and CEO of the New York Times Company, told analysts on Wednesday that the company has “begun to lay the groundwork for introducing an array of advertising products to The Athletic later in the year.”
  • The Times will introduce a bundled subscription with The Athletic “in the back half of this year,” Levien said. 
  • The Athletic lost $55 million on about $65 million in revenue in 2021, and the changes implemented by The Times will result in “a slight reduction in operating losses” this year, according to NYT executive vice president and CFO Roland A. Caputo.

Meanwhile, Wordle — the online word game acquired by the Times in the first quarter in the “low seven figures” range — has been a hit. 

“Wordle brought an unprecedented tens of millions of new users to The Times,”  Levien said. 

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

exclusive

Former ESPN NBA Reporter Nick Friedell to Join The Athletic Warriors Beat

The Athletic and ESPN essentially traded writers focused on the Warriors.

Murphy: Club WC Snags Won’t Derail Biggest Event ‘in Human History’

New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium is the concluding site of both FIFA events.
exclusive

Lakers Reporter Dan Woike Leaves LA Times for The Athletic

Woike had been at the L.A. Times for eight years.
Hilary Knight

The PWHL Badly Wants Parity. At What Cost?

The expansion draft has turned Seattle and Vancouver into instant title contenders. 

Featured Today

Oct 13, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts (1) and wide receiver A.J. Brown (11) celebrate their touchdown pass during the second quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Lincoln Financial Field.

TV Ratings Just Changed Again. The NFL Will Be the Big Winner

Nielsen’s new viewership system will have a big impact on sports.
Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) celebrates with offensive lineman Donovan Jackson (74) after a touchdown catch against Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the first quarter during the College Football Playoff National Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on January 20, 2025.
August 30, 2025

The Most Expensive Roster Year in College Football History

The House settlement created revenue-sharing—and a big NIL loophole.
August 26, 2025

‘You’re Going to Get Beat Up’: The Liberty’s All-Male Practice Squad

A select group suits up weekly to take on the defending champs.
August 24, 2025

The Honey Deuce Effect: How Tennis Perfected the Signature Cocktail

Sold every 1.5 seconds, they total more than $12 million in sales.

Ohio State–Texas Showdown Was Most-Watched Week 1 CFB Game Ever

Fox drew 16.62 million viewers on Saturday afternoon.
September 1, 2025

Lee Corso’s Farewell Delivers Record ‘College GameDay’ Viewership

ESPN averaged 3.5 million viewers, per preliminary figures.
September 2, 2025

NFL on Nielsen’s Latest Measurement Upgrade: ‘More Work to Be Done’

The league calls its relationship with the agency a “protracted journey.”
Sponsored

Gareth Bale on MLS vs EPL, Retirement & Buying Cardiff City

Gareth Bale shares his post-soccer business playbook.
August 28, 2025

NFL Preseason Sees 17% Jump in TV Ratings, Best Since 2018

Average audiences for the exhibition games increase sharply from last year.
Tom Brady
August 27, 2025

NFL Continues to Loosen Tom Brady Restrictions

Brady will be able to attend production meetings–remotely–this season.
ESPN
August 27, 2025

Disney Sues Sling TV Over $5 Day Passes Granting ESPN Access

Newly introduced short-term subscriptions spark a legal challenge.
August 27, 2025

FCC Chair Joins Fox–YouTube TV Fight With Big Game on the Line

The Trump appointee is now involved in another media carriage fight.