Sports Business Reporters to Know

Published November 16, 2023

There’s so much more to sports reporting than which team won last night’s game, which player is heading to the Hall of Fame, or who’s on the road to recovery from a major injury.

The sports industry, like any other, is also a business. It’s made up of more than just leagues and teams but of companies selling equipment, branded merchandise, memorabilia, collectibles, and so much more. It’s the job of a sports business reporter to share news representing the full range of the industry including new licensing deals, mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, etc.

Often, it can be confusing to decipher between a “sports reporter” and a “sports business reporter”. The typical sports business reporter does not report daily on wins, losses, or trades, but instead covers the behind-the-scenes work that happens off the field (or court or rink) and in the business world. Whether you’re working with a brand selling to sports teams or fans, here are five sports business reporters you should absolutely become friends with.

Pro Tip: Sports business reporters do not cover every sport. They usually have two or three sports under their coverage remit. It’s important to do your research on the sports business publication you’re pitching and really understand the nature of their reporting and where their focuses and passions lie to effectively build and maintain a relationship.

5 Sports Business Reporters to Know

Darren Rovell

Darren is arguably one of the most prominent sports business reporters in the game. He usually will be the first to break a story and spark a wildfire across “X” (formerly Twitter) and thus the Internet. There’s never a doubt if shocking news is in fact true if Darren is reporting on it.

Darren has worked at CNBC, where he was nominated for an Emmy for his documentary “Swoosh: Inside Nike.” In 2000 he was at ESPN, where he began covering betting as his beat.

Follow Darren’s work and industry commentary on his X thread here. You can also learn more about his company Kickstand Cocktails, which he launched earlier this year!

Jacob Feldman

Jacob is a sports business reporter at Sportico, a sports industry-focused digital publication that covers breaking news, data, and strategy. Jacob focuses on technological innovations in the industry and how companies are changing and elevating fan experiences.

Right when Carve began our work with Upper Deck, Derek Jeter introduced his digital collectibles marketplace Arena Club; we jumped on the opportunity to newsjack that announcement and connect with Jacob on behalf of Upper Deck. We informed him of Upper Deck’s position as the first digital collectibles platform in the industry and shared more about their offerings.

Check out Jacob’s feature story on The National Sports Collectors Convention and Upper Deck’s collection of Michael Jordan memorabilia celebrating the 25th anniversary of his final championship win here.

Jeff Owens

Jeff is the lead editor at Sports Collectors Digest, one of the top hobby trade publications for sports collectibles and memorabilia (and celebrating 50 years this year!). Not only do we regularly keep in touch with Jeff to share client news, but he’ll also reach out to us when he needs expert commentary on a topic or something major happens in the industry.

Jeff covers sports hobby news from the industry's biggest companies. He highlights the value of historical collectibles, attends and provides updates from industry events like the National Sports Collectors Convention, and profiles some of the most notorious athletes from the past and present.

One of the things we love about Jeff is his willingness to introduce us to the writers on his team, especially in cases where he personally can’t take an interview… shout out Clemente Lisi!

Dan Hajducky

If you ever want to work with a reporter who will always respond promptly to your pitches and give you direct feedback on why the story angle is a good fit for them or not, then shoot an email to Dan.

Dan is an associate editor at ESPN focused on enterprise journalism and running long-form investigative pieces. Dan covers a variety of topics from record-breaking sports memorabilia and collectibles auctions, feature interviews with the next generation of rising stars, and digs into the legislative and economic side of the sports business world.

Learn more about Dan’s style in his recent pieces here.

Alex Silverman

Last but certainly not least, Sports Business Journal is the top source for sports business news, and Staff Writer Alex Silverman is a great contact if you’re operating in the worlds of hockey or soccer.

As I mentioned, it’s important to know what sports and topics each reporter covers to effectively pitch them. Although Alex doesn’t cover football, when we supported Upper Deck’s announcement of its United States Football League (USFL) license this past spring, we combined the news with the company’s National Hockey Card Day campaign. This led to an inclusion in a weekly digest that highlighted all Upper Deck initiatives for a grand slam hit!

Read the story here.

The biggest thing to understand when it comes to working with sports business reporters is that not every piece of news your brand puts out will be worthy of a spot in their column. However, these reporters – more than any others – always appreciate being kept in the loop. Even if they don’t cover it when it happens as a juicy feature (which is obviously always the hope), they’ll keep note of it for future coverage and trend-oriented pieces.

Pro Tip: Make sure you clarify to a reporter when you’re sharing something with them as an FYI or a true pitch for coverage. It will demonstrate that you understand what they do and do not regularly cover and prompt real consideration of unusual angles!