The New York Times paid $550 million for The Athletic in 2022. Now, it may be the smartest acquisition the Times has made in years.
What We Know: According to an interview with Axios Live, Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien says The Athletic has grown from roughly one million subscribers at acquisition to many millions today. That growth makes it the fastest-expanding vertical across the entire New York Times portfolio. That’s notable given the Times also operates high-performing products like its games division, Wirecutter, and cooking. The Times shuttered its traditional sports department just one year after the purchase, replacing that content with Athletic reporting.
What They Said: New York Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien: “In The Athletic, when we acquired it four-and-a-half years ago, it was largely behind a paywall; it had about a million subscribers. That was about as many readers as they had. The Athletic has the fastest-growing audience on The New York Times. It’s many millions more than that today.”
What Remains Unclear: The exact subscriber count is unknown either by the NY Times or The Athletic. Additionally, not everyone views the Times’ influence as a positive. Critics argue that The Athletic’s editorial shift — from local beat coverage to national storytelling — has diluted what made the publication unique.
What It Means: Having the backing of the country’s most read digital newspaper, success for The Athletic was no secret. This summer, the strategy beyond subscriptions. The publication dropped its paywall for World Cup coverage, offering free access through the July 19 Final. That move signals an effort to broaden its audience further. Whether casual readers eventually convert to paying subscribers will be the real test.
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
