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What Is Sports Management and Why Is It Growing?
The global sports economy was valued at $2.3 trillion as of February 2026 and is expected to grow to $3.7tn in 2030, fueled by rising fan engagement, social media footprint, media rights, sponsorship revenue, and data analytics. Beyond what happens in game play, sports are a complex business ecosystem involving marketing, analytics, finance, operations, and strategic partnerships — all core functions if you want to work in a sports organization’s front office.
Demand for expertise in sports and business is strong: the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the sports and entertainment sector in the US is expected to grow by nearly 100,000 jobs per year until 2034.
These trends — from growing digital fan engagement to expanding global markets — make sports management skills increasingly valuable for students eager to pair business savvy with a passion for sports.
What Skills Do Sports Management Students Learn?
Kogod’s Sports Management specialization is a 15-credit track within the Business and Entertainment major, with classes in sports analytics, revenue operations, gaming and entertainment, and front-office strategy. The program's cohort model intentionally enrolls 25–30 students per year, creating a tight-knit community with targeted internship support and direct access to decision-makers in professional and collegiate sports.
The sports management curriculum emphasizes how sports organizations “win off the field,” with coursework in data analytics, Name-Image-Likeness (NIL) strategy, sponsorship, operations, and facility management. In partnership with American University Athletics, Kogod students have the opportunity to shadow AU Athletics staff and leadership working sporting events in different capacities, and engage in site visits that connect classroom concepts to live sports environments in the DC market and beyond.
What Do Kogod Students Study in Sports Analytics?
Students gain experience in:
- Sports marketing and sponsorship strategy
- Sports analytics and data-driven decision-making
- NIL and athlete branding
- Revenue strategy and growth
- Salary cap and roster construction
- Negotiation and partnership development
- Event operations and fan engagement
- Professional communication and stakeholder management
- Industry networking and relationship building
Through applied projects and experiential learning opportunities, students learn how to solve business challenges facing sports organizations while developing practical skills valued by employers.
Sports Management Class Spotlight: Sports Analytics
In Sports Analytics, students learn how to gain insights from analyzing sports data through descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive analytics. Analytical work conducted primarily in R programming language. Students obtain, format, and organize sports datasets; form clear inquiries addressable through data; apply common analytics techniques; think critically about real-world implications and causality; and understand challenges in implementing analytical findings. Topics include statistical modeling, Monte Carlo simulation, predicting performance, measuring player and team value, causal inference, next-generation location data, win probability models, game theory, and sports betting analytics.
Sports Management Class Spotlight: Revenue Strategy and Growth in Sports
Taught in the fall, Revenue Strategy and Growth in Sports examines how sports organizations generate revenue and manage financial constraints. Focus on sponsorship development and activation, facility operations and premium seating strategies, NIL marketplace and athlete compensation models, salary cap strategy and roster construction, and revenue sharing mechanisms. Students analyze real-world revenue models used by professional and collegiate sports organizations.
How Does Kogod Prepare Students for Careers in Sports?
Real-world hands-on learning is the sports management program’s defining feature, positioning internships and applied projects as the bridge to full-time roles in the sports industry. Students participate in live-event work, consulting projects, and industry site visits, including trips to major league franchises and DC-area professional teams, that accelerate career readiness and build job-ready portfolios.
Kogod’s Career Development, Alumni, and Industry Engagement teams maintain pipelines with professional sports teams, college athletic departments, entertainment agencies, and media properties to help students secure competitive internships and entry-level roles. Kogod students have previously worked on client consulting projects, landed internships, and secured full-time jobs with organizations like Monumental Sports, the Washington Wizards, the Washington Nationals, and more.
"The sports management program is all about giving students a combination of industry know-how and real, resume-ready experience," said program director Matthew Bakowicz. "Our focus on hands-on projects, internships, and direct engagement with industry leaders is intentional; our students graduate ready to step into front-office roles as the sports industry continues to expand and evolve."
What Makes Kogod's Sports Management Program Different?
Unlike many sports management programs that focus primarily on athletics administration, Kogod approaches sports through a business lens. Students study marketing, analytics, finance, negotiations, sponsorship strategy, and operations while applying those skills to professional sports organizations.
Located in Washington, DC, Kogod also provides access to a unique sports ecosystem that includes professional teams, collegiate athletics, sports agencies, governing bodies, and sports media organizations. These connections create opportunities for internships, networking, experiential learning, and career development.
The program combines classroom learning with real-world experiences, helping students develop both business expertise and industry connections before graduation.
How Do Sports Industry Leaders Engage With Kogod Students?
To demonstrate to students what long-term success in sports business looks like, Kogod draws inspiration from leaders who have built influential careers at the intersection of sports, investment, and innovation. Past events with sports business leaders include former NBA player-turned-entrepreneur Jamal Mashburn, Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Co-chairman Ed Glazer, and Washington Spirit CEO Kim Stone.
- Former NBA All-Star Jamal Mashburn spoke candidly about transforming his basketball career into a diversified business portfolio spanning restaurant franchises, car dealerships, real estate, and hospitality. Mashburn walked students through how he evaluates deals, builds strong operating teams, and uses the same discipline that fueled his basketball career to lead in boardrooms and investment meetings.
- Ed Glazer, Co-Chairman of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a member of the family ownership group behind Manchester United, unpacked what it means to steward two globally visible sports brands. In conversation with students, he discussed long-term thinking in franchise ownership, from stadium development and premium fan experiences to investing in real estate and automotive ventures through US Property Trust and US Auto Trust. Glazer emphasized that front-office careers demand both quantitative skills and a deep understanding of community impact, reminding students that “every decision shows up in the fan experience on game day.”
- When Kim Stone visited campus, she drew on her leadership roles with the Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors, and now as CEO of the National Women’s Soccer League’s Washington Spirit to illustrate the evolving business of live sports and entertainment. She shared how revenue strategy, venue innovation, and fan engagement come together to power major sports organizations, highlighting the unique opportunity in women’s sports as a high-growth, under-innovated space.
