Your Career in Sports Marketing Starts Here.

Athletics Marketing Intern.

It's one of the most common experiences I see on the resumes of students who successfully break into sports marketing after graduation.

Fun fact: it was also my first internship in sports.

During my junior year at Clemson, in the middle of the pandemic, I joined the athletic department alongside 10-15 other students who all had the same goal: build a career in sports.

I'll be honest. Being an athletics marketing intern isn't always glamorous.

There were plenty of what I like to call "shit tasks." Coming in early to lay programs on every seat in the stadium. Picking up signage in the pouring rain. Missing tailgates and student section seats because you were working the game instead of watching it. Long hours, early mornings, late nights - stop me if you’ve heard this before.

But it was also one of the most formative experiences of my career.

It gave me a firsthand look at how an athletic department operates, what it takes to bring a game day to life, and the types of challenges sports marketers are solving at the collegiate level and beyond. I got a front-row seat to some of the biggest moments on campus, learned from some exceptional professionals, and built relationships that continue to impact my career years later.

If you ask me, it was absolutely worth it.

But don't just take my word for it.

I reached out to athletics marketing interns across the country to learn how they landed the role, what they've learned from the experience, and why they'd recommend it to anyone interested in a career in sports.

Here's what they had to say.

Jenna Macosko
Ohio State Athletics Marketing | Recent Graduate
Career goal: Marketing or Social Media for an NFL Team

Jenna's path into athletics marketing started in partnerships. During her junior year, she became a Game Day Intern with Ohio State Sports Properties, where she learned how sponsorships, game presentation, and fan engagement all work together. The experience helped her build relationships across the department and ultimately led to a marketing internship during her senior year.

One of her favorite memories came during Ohio State's national championship football season. While helping manage on-field promotions and support game day activations, she had the opportunity to hold the national championship trophy after the Buckeyes won it all.

Her biggest advice is to step outside your comfort zone. Building relationships and talking to people throughout the industry helped create opportunities throughout her college career. She also emphasized the importance of being adaptable, because game days move fast and unexpected challenges are part of the job.

Looking back, Jenna would absolutely do it again. The experience gave her a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to create memorable game days while helping her develop skills and relationships that will continue to benefit her career.

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Leandro Zheng
UC San Diego Athletics Marketing | Rising Senior
Career goal: Sports Marketing - Content, Digital Campaigns, Experiential

Leandro earned his athletics marketing internship by applying directly and preparing extensively for the opportunity. Before interviewing, he researched the department, studied industry trends, and developed ideas around content creation, fan engagement, and game-day activations that demonstrated how he thinks about sports marketing.

Since joining the department, he has worked across all 23 varsity sports at UC San Diego, gaining experience well beyond what most students expect from a single internship. His favorite memories have come from documenting championship moments and capturing the reactions of student-athletes, families, and fans after major victories.

His biggest advice is to get involved and be willing to help wherever needed. Leandro believes being dependable, curious, and eager to learn has opened doors throughout his experience and allowed him to contribute in ways he never expected.

If given the opportunity again, the answer is an easy yes. The internship has allowed him to help grow the Tritons brand while showing him how sports bring communities together.

Athletics marketing is responsible for growing fan engagement and creating memorable experiences around college sports. The team develops promotional campaigns, drives attendance, manages student engagement initiatives, coordinates game-day entertainment, supports sponsorship activations, and helps build the overall brand of an athletic department and its teams.

On game day, athletics marketers are often the people bringing the experience to life. They oversee on-field and on-court promotions, coordinate contests and giveaways, execute fan engagement activities, and work alongside departments like communications, creative services, ticket sales, sponsorships, and operations. For students interested in sports business, athletics marketing is one of the best entry points into the industry because it provides hands-on experience while exposing interns to nearly every corner of an athletic department.

Ryan Titcomb
Wisconsin Athletics Marketing | Rising Senior
Career Goal: Corporate Partnerships in the NBA or NFL

Ryan landed his athletics marketing internship through a combination of networking and experience. After getting involved with Wisconsin's Sports Business Club, he connected with students who had previously held the role while also gaining experience through a guest services position with the athletic department.

One of his favorite memories was storming the field after a major Wisconsin football victory. He also joked that getting booed by more than 80,000 fans after a t-shirt cannon malfunctioned is a moment he won't forget anytime soon.

His biggest advice is to communicate constantly and stay adaptable. Athletics marketing requires coordinating with multiple departments while solving problems in real time when plans inevitably change.

While Ryan loved the experience, it also helped him discover that marketing wasn't the long-term path he wanted to pursue. Instead, it reinforced his interest in the business and partnerships side of sports, proving that internships can be just as valuable for finding your direction as they are for building experience.

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Noah Oliveira
Houston Athletics Marketing | Rising Sophomore
Career Goal: Marketing for a Sports Organization or Sports Media Company

Noah's path into athletics marketing started during orientation. After meeting a graduate assistant from Houston's marketing department, he learned about the internship opportunity but missed the application deadline for that semester. Rather than giving up, he spent the entire fall building relationships, seeking advice from current interns, and preparing for the next application cycle.

That persistence paid off when he earned the role the following semester. One of his favorite memories came while working his first Houston men's basketball game, experiencing one of the biggest events on campus from behind the scenes and helping create the game day atmosphere for fans.

His biggest advice is to learn how to adapt quickly. Momentum can shift in an instant during sporting events, and being able to stay calm, solve problems, and work with your team is one of the most important skills you can develop.

Noah plans to continue with the internship throughout college and credits the experience with confirming that a career in sports is exactly where he wants to be.

1. Be proactive
None of these students waited for an opportunity to fall into their lap. Some built relationships. Others cold applied. One missed the application deadline entirely and spent a semester preparing for the next opportunity. The common thread was initiative. In sports, opportunities often go to the people willing to take the first step.

2. Adaptability wins
If there's one thing every athletics marketing intern learns, it's that game days rarely go exactly according to plan. Promotions change, unexpected issues arise, and sometimes the t-shirt cannon stops working in front of 80,000 fans. The ability to communicate, stay calm, and adjust on the fly is one of the most valuable skills you can develop.

3. Enjoy the moment
The long hours, setup work, and behind-the-scenes responsibilities are all part of the job. But so are championship celebrations, sold-out crowds, court stormings, and memories that most fans never get to experience. Work hard, but don't forget to appreciate the unique opportunities that come with being part of a college athletics department.

Unlike many collegiate sports internship opportunities, athletics marketing internships typically have a formal application process. I would encourage you to do a quick google search to find the application for your school.

Just as importantly, I would also recommend doing some networking with the marketing staff and current interns to get on the inside track. There are 2 ways I’d recommend doing this.

1. Google “‘Your School’ Athletic Department Staff Directory".” The top link will have the email addresses for (nearly) every single staff member in the department.

2. Use LinkedIn! Search for the current marketing interns. Leverage the filters to narrow down your search.

When you are reaching out, keep it brief and professional.

-Introduce Yourself

-Highlight any relevant experience

-Express your interest and your why

Thank you for reading this week’s edition of So You Want to Work in Sports. I appreciate you being part of this community.

If you have ideas, feedback, or future guest suggestions, feel free to reach out at [email protected].

If you want more hands-on support as you navigate the start of your career within sports, book a 1:1 session with me here. The sooner you start preparing, the more confident you will feel when opportunities come your way.