Ad Marketing Student Intern, The Athletic
Summer 2026
The rate of pay for this role is $20.00 USD per hour
Subscription-based sports content publisher
Open for applications
Subscription-based sports content publisher
501-1000 employees
Open for applications
The rate of pay for this role is $20.00 USD per hour
501-1000 employees
Company mission
To produce smarter coverage for die-hard fans and redefine the way fans get access to sports content by flipping the normal model for sports journalism.
Role
Who you are
- Rising junior, senior, or recent graduate with relevant coursework or experience in marketing, advertising, communications, journalism, or a related field
- A strong interest in sports, media, and marketing
- Excellent writing, research, and storytelling skills
- Curious, collaborative, and comfortable working in a fast-paced, remote-first environment
- Detail-oriented and organized, with strong presentation and communication skills
- Proficient in Google Slides or PowerPoint (bonus: basic design sense or experience with Canva, Figma, or Adobe Creative Suite)
What the job involves
- The Athletic is accepting applications for its Leon H. Carter Internship Program for Summer 2026!
- We are seeking an Ad Marketing Student Intern to join our team in support of the Strategy and Program Management functions for Summer 2026
- The Ad Marketing team is the engine behind the custom advertising programs we build for brand partners
- Strategy and Program Management work closely with Sales, Planning, Design, Creative, and Editorial teams to turn client briefs into smart, insight-led sponsorship ideas and polished proposals
- We’re looking for an Ad Marketing Student Intern who’s eager to learn how brands show up in sports culture and make an impact on our brand partnerships
- You’ll learn how creative and media strategies come together, contribute to proposals, support advertiser programs, and build portfolio-worthy work
- What You'll Learn
- How sponsorship ideas are developed and pitched to major brands
- How strategy, creative, program management, media planning, and sales work together within a modern media company
- How to craft compelling stories and visually sharp presentations
- How to work cross-functionally on real, deadline-driven campaigns
- How to develop, price, and track programs and deliverables for client campaigns
- How to engage sports talent for branded content programs
- How to package your work for your professional portfolio
- You'll support proposal development by conducting client, industry, and audience research
- Contribute to brainstorms and help shape creative ideas that bring sponsorships to life
- Draft and compile proposal sections including trends, case studies, and background slides
- Partner with Strategy and Design to ensure decks are clear, cohesive, and on deadline
- Develop tools and templates to support and refine the proposal process and/or post-sale production process
- Work on a capstone project like an RFP response or client presentation with support from Strategy
- Gain exposure to the entire proposal strategy process: from sales brief to ideation and final pitch
Application process
- The application deadline is November, 17, 2025
Our take
The Athletic provides authentic, in-depth coverage written by journalists who know the teams they write about inside out. Its model bucks the trend of traditional sports journalism outfits by asking for a subscription rather than relying on ad-revenue.
Despite initial doubts that users would be willing to pay for sports journalistic content, The Athletic has found significant success and was acquired by the New York Times in 2022. Despite it operating at a loss directly after the takeover, it was clear that the New York Times perceived this as a long-term investment.
In 2025, it was reported that The Athletic was now profitable, which aligns well with its parent's prediction of profitability within 4 years. This has been aided by accelerated customer growth alongside the rising trend of subscription-based sports news.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (last 2 of 7 rounds)
Jan 2020
$50m
SERIES D
May 2019
$21.8m
SERIES C
Total funding: $139.7m
Company benefits
- Paid Time Off
- Paid Sick Leave
- Paid Parental Leave
- 401 (k)
- Short & Long Term Disability
- Free Subscription
- Competitive Health Care
- HSA & FSA
- Commuter Benefits
Company HQ
Financial District, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Adam Hansmann
(President & Co-Founder)Previously a McKinsey Business Analyst and then Associate at Calera Capital.
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