How to Start Your Career in the Sports Industry

Summary

The global sports industry is worth more than $600 billion and creates millions of jobs around the world each year. In the last few decades, sports have become more accessible for fans which has led to greater interest and higher demand. The growing sports industry means there's now a higher demand than ever for highly qualified professionals who understand the industry and are passionate about sports. For people who have a keen interest in sport, there aren't many places better to build a successful career. No matter what kind of skills you have, there are jobs across many different sectors, including business, marketing, legal, financial, hospitality, coaching and many more.

Despite being a varied industry with plenty of growth, the competition for jobs is high. With billions of sports fans around the world, perhaps it's not surprising that many new graduates from college and school find it difficult to start their career. The truth is that competition for jobs is high in any industry, but the sports industry sees a large number of qualified people all applying for the same roles. To overcome the competition, you need to be aware of how to educate, market and apply yourself to make the most of the opportunities that come your way.

Before you start out, you'll want to consider the kind of area you'd like to work in sports. Consider your interests, the kind of education required and the availability of the kind of jobs you'll be looking for. The sports industry is incredibly wide and varied, so there are opportunities for you no matter what kind of work you're interested in.

Once you've worked out the sort of career you'd like to take, you'll need to focus on the education and skills you'll need to stand out from other applicants. There are many different kinds of sports courses and degrees which will help you to start off your career and learn the skills and knowledge you need. Different roles require different levels of education, of course, and depending on the career you want, you'll need to plan your education well. Some roles will require extensive studying, while others can be picked up mostly through experience and vocational training.

Getting a start in the sports industry often takes a lot more than an education though, you'll also need to have experience and preferably, connections. More than your formal education, you need experience to prove to potential employers that you're the right fit for the job, volunteering, internships and work placement years are all effective ways of building your experience and networking when you first start out.

Starting your career is never simple, but by taking the right steps, you can make yourself stand out against the competition. With so much change and innovation in the industry, one thing will always remain the same, candidates with good skills and the right experience will always be preferred.

The sports industry is constantly adapting and innovating, with new technologies changing how the industry works and introducing new ideas and concepts. This constant change means those working in the sports industry have to constantly stay up to date and adapt. Those who stay ahead of the competition are always prepared to change and learn new skills when required.

What You'll Learn

· The different areas of the sports industry and how they're connected

· Skills you'll need to succeed within the sport industry

· How vocational learning can prepare you for working in sports

· Different types of sporting degrees and how they can help you

· Online courses and what to look for in an online course

· Whether formal qualifications are needed to work in the industry

· Why volunteering is important in sports

· How you can use volunteering to get ahead in the industry

· What is networking and how to network

· Effective ways you can network in the sports industry

· All about sports industry events and why you should attend

· Current trends within the sports industry

· How to find a job in sports

· How to create your CV and prepare for an interview

· In demand freelancing jobs

· How to move from freelancing to full-time

· Innovation in the sports industry

· What are startup competitions and how they can give you exposure

· How to pitch your idea to potential investors

Words from the Author, Saam Momen:

I have a true passion for teaching! I have proudly taught university courses in Switzerland, USA and Brazil. My career spans over 15 years in the sporting industry with jobs at the London Olympic Bid Committee, UEFA, CSM and TEAM Marketing. I possess a Master Degree in Sports Management and an Executive Education diploma at Harvard Business School on The Business of Entertainment, Media and Sports. I hope that throughout this course you are able to have a wonderful learning experience! Please do not hesitate to reach out should you have any queries.

Why Choose This Course?

This course has been specifically created to give you the best possible chance of starting a successful career in the sports industry. Millions of people each year apply for jobs within sports, yet many of them will never end up getting their dream job. While it's true the industry is growing, competition for the best positions is fierce, and the top jobs require extensive experience, skills and knowledge. For this reason, you'll need to be as well prepared as possible to ensure you find the job you want.

This course aims to help you prepare and start your career in sports, giving you the information you need to plan and build your career from the bottom up. Whether you're in education, employment, or simply looking for work, this course will give a plan on how to approach building your skills, making connections and looking for jobs. You'll have a chance to see how a person can begin their career in the sports industry and the steps they'll need to take along the way to build their profile and achieve long term success.

The sports industry is multifaceted, and the exact guide for how to begin will depend on the area you want to work in. That said, there are still a lot of steps you can follow to give yourself the best chance of building a successful career. In this course, we give you real examples and guides that help to give your job search direction. Looking for a new job is never easy, especially if you don't have experience. The course explains how you can make the most out of opportunities to build your experience, knowledge and professional network to make sure you shine in your applications.

You'll learn about the different areas of the industry, including the job requirements and daily responsibilities of sports event managers, sports marketers, sports journalists and more. Through examining these, you can learn what it takes to begin a career in specific sectors and decide on the best path to take. The course will help you to understand the education needed for specific areas and the different types of education that will help you get started in sports. Some roles won't require formal education, and the course will also discuss whether you need a degree to succeed in the sports industry.

Volunteering is a large part of gaining experience for many fresh graduates and students. It allows you to learn more about the daily operations of a sports organisation and see what kind of roles and responsibilities are available. The course will look at the benefits of volunteering and how you can leverage your time spent volunteering into a successful career. You will also get a chance to see what it's like to volunteer at a mega event and a short

In sports, networking is a crucial part of both finding a job and building your career. As you look for better opportunities within the sports industry, it's important to have a good network of other people working in the industry. Your network can also help you to stay up to date with what's happening in sports and keep up with changes and new trends. The course will look at how you can build your network and use it effectively to find career opportunities within the sports industry.

Industry events are helpful for learning more about sports, how the business of sports work and what goes on behind the scenes. You can also find out new information about areas of the industry you're interested in working in and discover new areas that may interest you. There are lots of different sports industry conferences and meetups around the world. Not only do these provide an excellent source of information, but they're also a great place to network with other professionals. The course will explain what you can gain from attending these conferences and how industry trends change over time.

All of the other chapters in the course will have helped you to understand how to improve your skills, gain more knowledge and create connections. You'll also be able to learn specific details on how to find a job within the sports industry. You'll get to learn about utilising your network, searching using online job portals and redesigning your CV. The course will also look at interview skills, helping you to properly prepare for and make the most of your job interview.

Finally, you'll also be able to learn about the potential benefits of freelancing or starting your own enterprise. There's advice on how to build in-demand skills and look for clients and the advantages of being a freelancer. You'll also learn how to potentially leverage your experience and connections built while freelancing into a full-time position within the industry. If you're creating your own startup, you'll need to know about innovation within sports, how to gain exposure and pitching to clients. All of these details and more are explained in the course, helping you to create your own success.