NIRSA and Athletic Business are proud to announce a new partnership that will benefit NIRSA members and AB readers. A longtime associate member, Athletic Business is an internationally recognized multimedia brand with more than four decades of experience with the athletics, fitness, and recreation industries. More than 40,000 subscribers turn to the Athletic Business print publication and tens of thousands more turn to the AB website for award-winning editorial content, as well as to view products and services offered by leading companies.

Through this exciting new partnership, Athletic Business becomes a Preferred Media Partner of the Association and NIRSA will be recognized by AB as Preferred Campus Rec Experts. NIRSA members will enjoy complimentary copies of nine issues of the AB publication each year, along with easier pathways to access relevant, curated online content on the AB website. As NIRSA’s Preferred Media Partner, NIRSA members can be confident in Athletic Business’ commitment to the values and goals of the profession.

Athletic Business will gain access to exclusive content and insights of NIRSA members and leaders, giving their audience another unique and informed perspective from an organization that has been advocating for the advancement of recreation, sport, and wellness for more than 65 years. “This is a natural partnership,” explains Peter Brown, President of Athletic Business. “As we explore the existing synergies inherent in our unique vantage points within the industry, both organizations will benefit from new ways of informing and educating our constituencies.”

Through AB’s print and digital assets, our diverse membership of over 4,500 dedicated professionals and students—on nearly 900 campuses across North America—along with more than 150 leading businesses in the college recreation space will be able to showcase campus recreation as an innovative and exciting segment of the broader athletic business industry. This spotlight will ultimately strengthen our ability to serve an estimated 10.2 million students and for NIRSA to be seen by a broader audience as a leading proponent of integrated health and wellbeing initiatives.

As two long-standing institutions in the athletics, fitness and recreation industries, both of which host leading-edge annual conferences, Athletic Business and NIRSA are well positioned to help our members and their readers find success in their future endeavors.

Many NIRSA members—especially those who are in or aspire to leadership positions within campus recreation—are already longtime readers of AB, so we’re excited that this new partnership will bring this trusted resource to all NIRSA members. NIRSA’s partnership with AB stands to advance our strategic values and positions the Association well for emerging strategic priorities.

About Athletic Business

Athletic Business is read in print by more than 40,000 qualified subscribers (and tens of thousands more online) representing colleges and universities, high schools, park and recreation departments, military branches and bases, health clubs, YMCAs, professional sports teams, stadiums and arenas, sports architecture firms, and hospital and corporate wellness centers. Year after year, AB ranks as the industry’s “best read” magazine by Readex Research. AB has been an associate member of NIRSA since 1997.

  • For more information about NIRSA’s partnership with Athletic Business, contact NIRSA Director of Sales and Corporate Relations Heidi Cleary.

Bill Crockett, RCRSP is currently the Executive Director of Campus Life Services at the University of Maryland Baltimore and the President on the NIRSA Board of Directors. He can be reached at president@nirsa.org. Pam Watts is NIRSA Executive Director. She can be reached at pam.watts@nirsa.org.