With new sports centres opening, bikes everywhere, and some huge sporting events hitting Manchester’s stadiums, we’re defininely feeling the sports buzz here at UNITOM. So get on your kit, lace up your shoes, and get yourself warmed up for some of the best sports magazines of 2023. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a Saturday spectator, we’ve got mags for you!
Like The Wind magazine covers running stories from around the world. A great read for anyone interested in running, this mag keeps pace whether you’re into short and punchy city runs or ultra-distances through the mountains. Each issue includes running superstars, thoughtful human stories by everyday runners, top-notch running photography, interviews, and poetry.
Issue 36 Highlight: 'Running While Black' Simon Freeman interviews Alison Désir and Sabrina Pace-Humphreys.
“We’re running road races. We have all this knowledge and information. We’re here. It’s a matter of whether they’re going to give us a seat at the table.” – Alison Désir (founder of Black Trail Runners)
2. Motor
Motor magazine is a beautiful new publication on the theme of dance. Not just for pro dancers or academics, Motor’s aim is to widen dance’s audience through this tender and accessible publication. Inside you’ll find conversations with dancers, artwork, poetry, and an abundance of thoughtful articles. What’s it like to go solo, how might be body be ready like a seismograph, and why do people dance? Find the answers in Motor.
Issue 1 Highlight: 'Cruising as a Quick Dance' by Jack Parlett.
“What might it mean to imagine cruising as a quick dance between persons — a thread of connection, a singular movement, at once improvised and inscribed with anticipated meanings?”
3. Rouleur
The cycling magazine Rouleur (meaning all-rounder in the pro-cycling world) has become a staple publication for riders. The mag features award-winning journalism and photography, telling cycling stories from all over the world. The latest installment is all about the Tour de France, with half of the issue focused on men and the other focused on women. Inside you'll find memories from the Tours de France Féminins in the 1980s, an exclusive interview and photoshoot with Tadej Pogačar, and a catch-up with speed skater turned sprinting star Charlotte Kool.
Issue 120 Highlight: 'Little Bundles of Joy' (a celebration of the Tour de France’s flowers) by Edward Pickering.
“The quintessential landscape of the Tour, outside the mountain stages, is the field of sunflowers, which are blooming in July when the race goes past.”
4. Flagrant
A basketball magazine founded and run entirely by women. Aimed at everyone who loves the sport, Flagrant reports stories from the court and beyond that might otherwise have been overlooked. Inside you’ll find articles on basketball culture, art, fans, players, communities, and fashion.
Issue highlight: 'Love Your Planet Like You Love Your Team, a plea from a sports ecologist' by Arielle Hernandez.
“[…] a sports industry aiming to be more environmentally friendly is also inherently more equitable and inclusive, which is the most essential intersectionality of sport ecology — a cause that is far-reaching and transformative.”
5. Mundial
Mundial is the perfect magazine for football-mad Manchester. An incredibly popular quarterly magazine all about the beautiful game, publishing content at the intersection of football and culture. Often funny, nostalgic, and warm, this mag is like a chat over a pint with your best mate about last night’s game.
Issue 26 Highlight: 'The 75 Coolest Goalkeepers Of All Time!'
Featuring: Packie Bonner, Saskia Webber, Che Guevara, Purin The Super-Beagle, Phyllis Vance and 70 more! But who’s number one?…
6. Sidetracked
Sidetracked is a magazine inspired by adventure in all its forms. Extreme landscapes, rough conditions, long journeys, crazy ideas, and all the drama of those adventures that go to plan and those that fall off course. The latest issue focuses on uncertainty, features a lot of ice and snow, and tells stories to remind us that we can never be sure what our next adventure has in store!
Issue 27 Highlight: 'Beyond The Walls, Exploring Malawi’s Mulanje Massif' by Michael Levy.
“I was convinced that I was watching my friend plummet to his death, and Matt, without time to process, must have thought the same. The look in his eyes was one of abject terror.”
7. Thiiird
Thiiird is an independent arts, fashion, and culture magazine that focuses on marginalised and underrepresented voices. While not usually sports-focused, their Body Movements issue offers thoughtful and varied perspectives on the intersections of sports, movement, queerness, and race. Covering plus-sized dance, pride on the pitch, and surfing for mental health. Thiiird avoids over-representing competitive sports, instead finding new movements towards community and joy.
Issue 6 Highlight: Interview with Patricio Manuel on 'Boxing and The Body, transition, and trans sports' by Daniela Hornskov Sun.
“It's impossible when you’re playing a sport not to be present in your body if you’re gonna do it well; and especially in a contact sport, like boxing, it’s a huge liability if you’re not present. It’s about having agency over myself in my own body for the first time in a while.”
8. OOF
Oof is a fun and niche magazine all about the relationship between art and football. Lowry’s ‘Going To The Match’, Picasso’s ‘Football’, and Warhol’s portraits of Pele; the art world has a long history of depicting the beautiful game. Oof speaks to the worldwide significance of football as a community builder, a pathway to human connection, and a way to inspire creativity.
Issue 11 Highlight: 'Discofoot, Dancing to Victory'.
“If I watch a football match, I’m going to see it as a dancer and choreographer. I’m going to see it choreographically, as a dispersion of bodies in space.” – Thomas Caley (co-creator of discofoot, a unique blending of disco and football where teams score points for choreography as well as goals)
9. Pitch
Pitch is a jam-packed magazine aimed at sports fanatics, with each issue covering 30 (yes 30!) different sports. The magazine includes up-to-the-minute sports journalism, deep dives on specific sporting events, book reviews, interviews, and incredible sports photography. Pitch casts its net wide; offering insights into some of the world’s most popular games, as well as introducing readers to sports they may have never come across before!
Issue 4 Highlight: 'Flat Earth Society, the near-mystical world of East Anglia’s fenland skaters' photos by Harry George Hall.
“Fen skating is like life. Enjoy it while you can”– Richard (fenland skater)