The Athletic - who subscribes and what is it like?

[Canary Jedi 610]

Tempted to give it a go for £1 a month.

I’m pretty happy with the PinkUn provision - regular updates and a good variety. Generally well written, thoughtful articles. 
Is the Athletic more of the same or does it give a different perspective?

Thanks for sharing your views.  

[Blurboy1980 36]

I subscribe and I really like it. Each day I get a email with the stories to the topics what I subscribe to. They are usually a really good read. Plus I really like Michael Bailey’s work. 

[Deptford Yellow 295]

I thought I would miss Michael Bailey’s post match reviews big time but I think Dave Freezer has really grown in to the role ... (so I haven’t signed up to the Athletic...)

 

[Blurboy1980 36]

26 minutes ago, Deptford Yellow said:

I thought I would miss Michael Bailey’s post match reviews big time but I think Dave Freezer has really grown in to the role ... (so I haven’t signed up to the Athletic...)

 

Met Dave when they did the Tampa Bay Tour and super nice guy. Love watching his videos also and reading his articles. 

[markdmhoward 74]

2 hours ago, Canary Jedi said:

Tempted to give it a go for £1 a month.

I’m pretty happy with the PinkUn provision - regular updates and a good variety. Generally well written, thoughtful articles. 
Is the Athletic more of the same or does it give a different perspective?

Thanks for sharing your views.  

I can gift you a free pass for the month?

Pm your email 👍

[Dr Greenthumb 793]

7 hours ago, Canary Jedi said:

Tempted to give it a go for £1 a month.

I’m pretty happy with the PinkUn provision - regular updates and a good variety. Generally well written, thoughtful articles. 
Is the Athletic more of the same or does it give a different perspective?

Thanks for sharing your views.  

Worth it for a pound a month, I wouldn’t pay £60 for the year though 

[Block Y Seat 176 80]

1 hour ago, Dr Greenthumb said:

Worth it for a pound a month, I wouldn’t pay £60 for the year though 

Part of the business model is, from my experience, to entice new subscribers on a cheap deal, who then do not cancel as 12 month deal ends and then are on £7.99 a month. If you cancel at this time you will be charged for the year “ as per T & C “ and  as you have cancelled will receive no more articles. Research this before subscribing is my advice.

[Dr Greenthumb 793]

1 minute ago, Block Y Seat 176 said:

Part of the business model is, from my experience, to entice new subscribers on a cheap deal, who then do not cancel as 12 month deal ends and then are on £7.99 a month. If you cancel at this time you will be charged for the year “ as per T & C “ and  as you have cancelled will receive no more articles. Research this before subscribing is my advice.

Exactly. I did the £30 for the year last July and have clicked the “auto renew” button off. I will just wait for the next deal. It’s ok. But if you are solely wanting to read Norwich, only take the offers.

[GenerationA47 864]

Just cancelled - 2 months short of full year on the £1/month offer. There was no auto-renew on / off option in account settings.
 

This is obviously deliberate by them because one option in the ‘what’s your reason for cancelling’ survey was ‘I want to turn off auto-renew’. They’d rather see people like me leave for sure apparently, than give an option to turn off auto-renew.
 

Clearly a tricky business when it comes to revenue protection techniques . Trustpilot reviews not pretty reading - lots of different complaints

In terms of content it was very good while it lasted, only read MB’s stuff and listened to his weekly podcast, and occasional wider football stuff.

[Bovril 264]

I've been a subscriber for two years now (the first year I paid the £1/month deal, and then the 2nd year I managed to 'gift' a membership to myself for £25 for the year), both deals I argue provide great value for money. 

Ultimately it comes down to why you want to subcribe/what you would read:

Option 1) You're only interested in Norwich/Michael Bailey stories. In this scenario, as good as MB's pieces are, I probably wouldn't subscribe as you're not benefiting from what The Athletic offers relative to what you're paying (especially if subscribing for the full whack).

Option 2) You're likely to read Norwich stories + another. I read their articles right across the football section (Norwich, EPL, Bundesliga, La Liga, FPL, FM21, etc.). This is before you even get to the various other sports they offer. For example I read the Boxing as well, but you can read up on NFL, NHL, NBA, Tennis, etc. 

End of the day, I think it's superb value for money, as they have literally hired all the top talent from across the sports journalism world (from best local to best national). Compare it to buying a physical magazine for £2-3 a month and you literally get 1000's more articles each month. 

I would subscribe. 

[markdmhoward 74]

Yeah Ive been a subscriber since near the beginning. The first year was cheap, and then I got a renew offer for £25 I think it was.

Well worth it, as I read a fair few football articles as well as some other sports.

The articles themselves are well researched, provide great statistical analysis. No gossipy stuff or clickbait 👍

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 2,424]

Just to echo others I think it is great value, the Euros coverage has been great as they have provided real insight into all the teams at the tournament. I wouldn't compare it to the PinkUn, which is more reportage and the Athletic is more in depth reporting. 

The Athletic doesn't do match reports for example as they know everyone will just get that elsewhere but Michael Bailey has the time to do real deep dives into topics. His piece on Emi Buendia was great, going at length to get interviews with his previous coaches and his time in Spain - the PinkUn isn't able to give their reporters the time do such pieces as they need to have 4 or 5 new pieces on the website everyday.

Also, getting all the Athletic Podcasts without adverts is a nice little bonus - saves you from having to hear about Squarespace, Skillshare, Manscaped et al at least 100 times a month.

[Cantiaci Canary 610]

Also great if you follow other sports. I'm a massive NHL fan and the coverage of the Stanley Cup has been superb.

 

Edited June 27, 2021 by Cantiaci Canary

[Captain Obvious 2]

If you go theathletic.com instead of .co.uk you can subscribe for free (at least that's what I did) now I can read all the articles on the .co.uk site and haven't paid a penny.

Edited August 16, 2021 by Captain Obvious

[PurpleCanary 6,386]

What's their coverage like of Serie A, the European leagues below the top five, and the Championship?

[Icecream Snow 777]

56 minutes ago, PurpleCanary said:

What's their coverage like of Serie A, the European leagues below the top five, and the Championship?

This is screenshot of their most recent Serie A articles. Championship is limited to us, Watford, Bournemouth, Derby , Forest and Sheffield Wednesday.

 

[PurpleCanary 6,386]

6 minutes ago, Icecream Snow said:

This is screenshot of their most recent Serie A articles. Championship is limited to us, Watford, Bournemouth, Derby , Forest and Sheffield Wednesday.

 

Thanks. Very useful.

[Nuff Said 5,962]

4 hours ago, Dr Greenthumb said:

Exactly. I did the £30 for the year last July and have clicked the “auto renew” button off. I will just wait for the next deal. It’s ok. But if you are solely wanting to read Norwich, only take the offers.

I’ve just had a look and can’t find it. Is it in the app, or the website?

I paid £1 for 12 months, had one month at £7.99, cancelled, then resubscribed at £2.99. What I’m paying now feels fair for what I get out of it, I only really read the Norwich content and maybe one other article a week. I have listened to the podcast a few times, but I think that might be available without a subscription?

[Dr Greenthumb 793]

1 minute ago, Nuff Said said:

I’ve just had a look and can’t find it. Is it in the app, or the website?

I paid £1 for 12 months, had one month at £7.99, cancelled, then resubscribed at £2.99. What I’m paying now feels fair for what I get out of it, I only really read the Norwich content and maybe one other article a week. I have listened to the podcast a few times, but I think that might be available without a subscription?

I think I found it on the web browser (been a while since I did it)

[Nuff Said 5,962]

I meant to add, I’d compare the coverage to that of a broadsheet as to the PinkUn’s tabloid.

[FenwayFrank 2,717]

@Canary Jedi I have a thirty day free trial I can send you if you like, just pm me an e mail address 

[Badger 2,745]

OP - just to back up what others have said.

The articles I have read are very good and often in more depth than I have found elsewhere but I am mainly only interested in the NCFC articles (and ones relating to football finance), so wouldn't be worth full price to me (until they cover Test and domestic cricket anyway).

Like others, I will continue when I can get special offers but will not pay full price of 7.99 per month. Shame they don't have a range of packages perhaps?

[king canary 8,757]

2 hours ago, Bovril said:

I've been a subscriber for two years now (the first year I paid the £1/month deal, and then the 2nd year I managed to 'gift' a membership to myself for £25 for the year), both deals I argue provide great value for money. 

Ultimately it comes down to why you want to subcribe/what you would read:

Option 1) You're only interested in Norwich/Michael Bailey stories. In this scenario, as good as MB's pieces are, I probably wouldn't subscribe as you're not benefiting from what The Athletic offers relative to what you're paying (especially if subscribing for the full whack).

Option 2) You're likely to read Norwich stories + another. I read their articles right across the football section (Norwich, EPL, Bundesliga, La Liga, FPL, FM21, etc.). This is before you even get to the various other sports they offer. For example I read the Boxing as well, but you can read up on NFL, NHL, NBA, Tennis, etc. 

End of the day, I think it's superb value for money, as they have literally hired all the top talent from across the sports journalism world (from best local to best national). Compare it to buying a physical magazine for £2-3 a month and you literally get 1000's more articles each month. 

I would subscribe. 

This basically.

Just looking for Norwich content? Probably not worth it, as good as MB is.

Interested in other teams? Much more worth it.

Interested in the other sports the cover? Then 100% worth it right now.

[Nuff Said 5,962]

1 hour ago, king canary said:

This basically.

Just looking for Norwich content? Probably not worth it, as good as MB is.

Interested in other teams? Much more worth it.

Interested in the other sports the cover? Then 100% worth it right now.

Or: £1 a month just for Norwich content is probably ok, £2.99 is on the cusp for me. The full £7.99 is too much for what I want.  As Badger says, a football only subscription for less would make sense, maybe a one club subscription for the bottom tier as well?

[Midlands Yellow 4,682]

16 hours ago, Deptford Yellow said:

I thought I would miss Michael Bailey’s post match reviews big time but I think Dave Freezer has really grown in to the role ... (so I haven’t signed up to the Athletic...)

 

I wouldn’t be surprised if Freezer joins them too in time, or Connor.