All you need to know about a career in sports management

Sports management is a field of business that deals with the management, finance, marketing and administrative techniques in the field of sports and recreation. The sports management courses train students to understand the business dynamics and applications of the sports industry. As one moves up the ladder, numerous professionals are playing their part behind the screen consisting of sports administrators, facility managers, information experts and sports economists.
The sports management course empowers students to take up a career with organizations ranging from college level to professional sports organizations.
Available job roles: sports agent, sports manager, sports medicine professional, sports information director, sports marketing specialist, event/facility manager, sports commentator/journalist, sports celebrity manager.
Key skills required: Technical knowledge, emotional intelligence, interpersonal relationship, patience, teamwork, communication, leadership, organizational skills, management aptitude.

What to study?
Students wanting to pursue a career in sports management can explore the following pathways:
Path 1: Class XII in any stream; BA (Sports Management) or BBA (Sports Management); MBA (Sports Management).
Path 2: Class XII in any stream; Graduation with any stream; PG Diploma in Sports Management/ MBA (Sports Management).

Where to study?
Some of the top colleges in India and abroad for Sports Management are listed below:

(India)
• National Academy of Sports Management, Mumbai
• International Institute of Sports Management, Mumbai
• Lakshmi Bai National University of Physical Education, Gwalior
• Tamil Nadu Physical Education & Sports University, Chennai
• IISWBM, Kolkata

(Abroad)
• Southern New Hampshire University, United States
• Loughborough University, United Kingdom
• EU Business School – Barcelona, Spain
• The University of Queensland, Australia
• University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Pros & Cons
Pros: Work with big brands, independent work, diverse field.
Cons: Tough job market, long hours, odd work hours.

Top Recruiters
Some of the top recruiters of sports management professionals are: BCCI, ISL, IPL, Sports Authority of India, Indian Olympic Association, other sports associations, IMG-Reliance, IOS SPorts and Entertainment, Baseline Ventures, Procam International, JSW Sports, Sporty Solutions, Rhiti Sports, CIALFO Solutions, Dark Horse Sports, Fanatic Sports, Playo, Chauka etc.

Advancing North East (www.advancingnortheast.in) is a one stop solution web portal for career and livelihood developed by the North Eastern Development Finance Corporation (NEDFi) and funded by the North Eastern Council, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (M-DoNER), Govt of India. For any query related to your career and livelihood reach out through guideme@advancingnortheast.in.