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BREAKING: Sports Illustrated Lays Off ALL Staff After Going Woke, Losing Readers

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10 months ago

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In a stunner, Sports Illustrated has reportedly laid off its entire staff.

The drastic move comes after the Authentic Brands Group (ABG), which acquired Sports Illustrated from parent company Meredith for $110 million five years ago, terminated its agreement with The Arena Group for the publication of the magazine in both print and digital formats according to an email obtained by Front Office Sports.

The Arena Group, which had been managing Sports Illustrated’s operations, recently missed a crucial $2.8 million payment, breaching their licensing deal with ABG. The financial misstep has had dire consequences, leading to the mass layoffs announced on Friday.

Employees were informed via email that some would be terminated immediately, while others would work through a notice period.

“Some employees will be terminated immediately, and paid in lieu of the applicable notice period under the [the union contract],” Arena’s email said to the staff. “Employees with a last working day of today will be contacted by the People team soon. Other employees will be expected to work through the end of the notice period, and will receive additional information shortly.”

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The Sports Illustrated Union has called upon ABG to ensure the magazine’s continued publication. Mitch Goldich, NFL editor and unit chair of the union, wrote,  “We have fought together as a union to maintain the standard of this storied publication that we love, and to make sure our workers are treated fairly for the value they bring to this company. It is a fight we will continue.”

Friday marks a significant downturn for the once illustrious sports magazine, which has been a cornerstone of sports journalism for decades. The magazine, known for covering major global events and its iconic Swimsuit Edition, has faced challenges in recent times.

Over the years, Sports Illustrated has made more and more efforts to include diversity in its features, including models of different body types, ages, and backgrounds in the Swimsuit Edition, or covering social justice issues in sports. Many readers have expressed discontent with this, seeing the moves as political and departing from the magazine’s core focus of sports.

The inclusion of transgender and plus-size individuals on its covers also represented a significant departure from traditional sports magazine norms. In May 2023, the magazine featured a transgender male on the cover of its swimsuit issue.

Last year, it came under fire for using AI-generated content, including bylines and photos of non-existent authors. The magazine was caught posting biographies of reporters who did not exist, as well as using headshots of fake photos made by artificial intelligence programs. The controversy led to the scrubbing of such content from its site and the eventual firing of The Arena Group’s CEO, Ross Levinsohn.

The future of Sports Illustrated now hangs in the balance. With ABG still holding the rights to the brand, it remains unclear whether they will establish a new operator or allow The Arena Group to renegotiate its current deal.

The full ramifications of the decision are yet to be seen, but it undoubtedly marks the end of an era for Sports Illustrated and its staff.



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