As the old adage goes, if you can find a way to make a living doing something you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. While that sentiment may be a bit overly optimistic, if you are among the many millions of Americans who love sports, finding a way to make a living from your love of sports could lead to a rewarding and thoroughly satisfying career.

Assuming professional athlete isn’t a realistic option for you, there are many other potentially great careers, including coaching, training, sports broadcasting and reporting, and many more.

Here’s how you can get your career in sports off to a good start.

Become an Expert

Whether you are looking to break into sports broadcasting, become a coach, personal trainer, sports manager, or other sports-related career, you have to become an expert, first. The best way to start is by playing sports as a kid and, if possible, throughout high school and college. That establishes your expertise as an athlete, while also making you an expert in specific sports.

Even if you aren’t athletic, you still can have a great career as sports broadcaster, as the legendary Howard Cosell aptly demonstrated. You also could become a sports reporter, writer, or even a blogger. The idea is to become a true expert in one or more sports, improve your reporting skills, and advance your career.

Education and Training

If you are intent on a career in sports broadcasting, the best way to get started is to take formal classes in reporting and broadcasting. You need to know how to write content, present sports stories and information in a compelling manner, and learn all the regulatory and industry standards for becoming a truly polished professional. The best way to do that is to enroll in a broadcasting school.

A good broadcasting school will teach you the technical aspects of radio and television sports broadcasting. You might be able to get an internship at a local radio or television station, but that likely will mean no pay and little practical experience. A good broadcasting school can help you to gain invaluable experience on the latest equipment, while learning from experienced industry professionals.

Many Potential Broadcasting Careers

You don’t have to be on camera to have a lot of fun and make a great living in the sports broadcasting industry. Many production jobs pay very well, from producer and director, to editor, camera operators, studio producer, marketing, sales, and many others. But the only way to learn what they are and how to master them is to get training. BeOnAir Media Schools has campus locations in four states and offers many affordable course options to help you embark on a successful, rewarding, and fun career in the sports broadcasting industry.