About the Role
The Athletic is accepting applications for its Leon H Carter newsroom internship, a 12-week program based in London, which will run from May to August 2026.
The intern will be embedded on our editorial team, which will expose the intern to every facet of the newsroom. The mission of The Athletic’s internship program is to attract and develop the industry’s next stars. Throughout the summer, the intern will experience the beating heart of our newsroom and be supported to sample all the aspects of what we do, with regular feedback sessions to ensure the intern gets the maximum out of their time with The Athletic. The intern will help shape our most informative coverage while helping to advance our goal to be the top destination for sports news around the world. This is a paid internship.
Leon H. Carter is the Editor at Large at The Athletic. Prior to joining The Athletic in 2021, he was a VP at ESPN. He also worked 15 years at the NY Daily News. Under his leadership, the NYDN won numerous national awards. In 1993, he helped create the Sports Journalism Institute to improve diversity at media outlets. In 2022, he received the Red Smith Award, one of the highest honors in sports journalism.
This position is based in London and would require office attendance for the majority of the internship.
The application deadline is 28 November 2025.
Responsibilities
1. Experience, in full, what The Athletic’s industry-leading global football/soccer department produces and become a full part of the team.
2. Assigned an editor throughout the internship and a ‘buddy’ - a reporter who can provide a point of reference throughout.
3. Time within each department - news, data, audio, subbing, socials and others - to discover where your true passion lies.
4. Expectation to produce published work regularly within the internship.
5. Assigned time ‘out in the field’ alongside reporters.
6. Learn and understand the editing process - what an editor looks for in a piece. Go through pieces with editors and sub editors from idea to publishing.
7. Learn the importance of legal requirements, rights of reply, to investigations and in-depth reads.
Requirements
8. Currently an undergraduate or a recent postgraduate student looking to break into the sports journalism industry.
9. 18 years of age or older.
10. Ability to work a 30-40 hour work week, including evenings and weekends when required.
11. Right to work in UK.
12. Flexibility: ability to adapt to fast-paced work environments where needs and priorities can change quickly.
13. A can-do attitude with a determination to succeed and welcome constructive feedback throughout the internship.
14. A tenacity to break a story, land an interview, work with the rest of The Athletic’s substantial staff - and provide original, thought-provoking ideas.
15. Deep knowledge of and a passion for sports.
16. A willingness to work as part of a team.
17. This position is based in London and would require office attendance for the majority of the internship.