History of Sports Illustrated in Timeline

Sports Illustrated (SI) is an American sports magazine launched in 1954 by Stuart Scheftel. It was the first magazine with over a million in circulation to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twice. SI is known for its sports coverage and its annual swimsuit issue, first published in 1964, which has led to various related media and product spin-offs.

1936: First Sports Illustrated Created by Stuart Scheftel

In 1936, Stuart Scheftel created the first magazine named Sports Illustrated, which was published monthly until 1942, targeting sportsmen and focusing on golf, tennis, and skiing.

1942: First Sports Illustrated Publication Ceased

In 1942, Stuart Scheftel's first magazine named Sports Illustrated publication ceased.

1949: Dell Publications Released Sports Illustrated

In 1949, Dell Publications released their version of Sports Illustrated which focused on major sports, lasting only six issues before closing.

August 9, 1954: Sports Illustrated Launched

On August 9, 1954, Sports Illustrated was launched as a general, weekly sports magazine with a national following.

August 1954: Sports Illustrated First Published

In August 1954, Sports Illustrated, an American sports magazine, was first published by Stuart Scheftel.

1954: Meeting at Pine Lakes Country Club

In 1954, Luce and editors of the planned Sports Illustrated magazine met at Pine Lakes Country Club in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where the first issue was presented.

1954: Roger Bannister Won First Sportsman of the Year Award

In 1954, Roger Bannister won the first-ever Sportsman of the Year award from Sports Illustrated for breaking the four-minute mile record.

May 1956: Laguerre Brought to New York

In May 1956, Henry Luce brought Andre Laguerre to New York to become the assistant managing editor of Sports Illustrated.

1956: Andre Laguerre's Winter Olympics Coverage

In 1956, Andre Laguerre's coverage of the Winter Olympic Games in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy became the core of Sports Illustrated's coverage of those games.

1956: First ASDAs Presented

In 1956, Sports Illustrated presented the first annual ASDAs to Claire McCardell and Rudi Gernreich, recognizing excellence in sportswear/activewear design.

1958: First All-Women Winning Group

In 1958, Jeanne S. Campbell, Bonnie Cashin, and Rose Marie Reid formed the first all-women winning group for the Sports Illustrated sportswear/activewear design prize.

1960: Laguerre Named Managing Editor

In 1960, Andre Laguerre was named managing editor of Sports Illustrated, leading to a doubling of circulation through departmental editors, redesign, and full-color photographic coverage.

1961: Emilio Pucci Received Award

In 1961, Emilio Pucci became the first non-American designer to receive the Sports Illustrated sportswear/activewear award.

1963: Marc Bohan Received Award

In 1963, Marc Bohan received the Sports Illustrated sportswear/activewear design prize.

1963: Muhammad Ali's first Sports Illustrated cover appearance

In 1963, Muhammad Ali first appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated, marking the beginning of his frequent appearances.

1964: Swimsuit Issue First Published

In 1964, Sports Illustrated published its first annual swimsuit issue, which has led to many other products and works in other media.

1965: Offset Printing Began

In 1965, offset printing began, allowing the color pages of Sports Illustrated to be printed overnight, producing crisper and brighter images and enabling the editors to merge the best color with the latest news.

1967: 200 Pages of Fast Color

By 1967, Sports Illustrated was printing 200 pages of "fast color" a year.

1983: First Full-Color Newsweekly

In 1983, Sports Illustrated became the first American full-color newsweekly.

1986: HBO/Cannon Video pact to produce video versions of the magazine

In 1986, Sports Illustrated co-owned property HBO/Cannon Video had inked a pact to produce video versions of the magazine for $20 on the sell-through market, running just 30–45 minutes on the tape.

March 1990: Sports Illustrated credited its cover contributors

In March 1990, Sports Illustrated credited the contributors of its covers up to that date.

1990: Time Inc. Merged with Warner Communications

In 1990, Time Inc. merged with Warner Communications to form the media conglomerate Time Warner.

1999: Muhammad Ali Named Sportsman of the Century

In 1999, Sports Illustrated named Muhammad Ali the Sportsman of the Century at the Sports Illustrated's 20th Century Sports Awards in New York City's Madison Square Garden.

2002: List of top 200 Division I sports colleges

In 2002, Sports Illustrated published a list of the top 200 Division I sports colleges in the U.S.

November 2003: List of contributing photographers and agencies

In November 2003, the November 10th issue of Sports Illustrated listed 379 contributing photographers and agencies.

2007: Sports Illustrated Acquired FanNation.com

In 2007, Sports Illustrated acquired FanNation.com to compete in the Web 2.0 market.

2008: Creation of the Sportsman Legacy Award

In 2008, the Sportsman Legacy Award was created to honor former sports figures embodying sportsmanship, leadership, and philanthropy.

March 2010: Frank Deford on Andre Laguerre

In March 2010, Frank Deford wrote of Andre Laguerre and his impact on Sports Illustrated, emphasizing his unique editorial genius.

2014: Time Inc. Spun Off From Time Warner

In 2014, Time Inc. was spun off from Time Warner.

2015: Sportsman Legacy Award renamed to Sports Illustrated's Muhammad Ali Legacy Award

In 2015, Sports Illustrated renamed its Sportsman Legacy Award to the Sports Illustrated's Muhammad Ali Legacy Award to honor the boxing legend.

2017: Colin Kaepernick honored with the Muhammad Ali Legacy Award

In 2017, Colin Kaepernick was honored with the Sports Illustrated's Muhammad Ali Legacy Award, presented by Beyoncé.

2017: J. J. Watt and Jose Altuve Won Award

In 2017, Houston Texans' J. J. Watt and Houston Astros' Jose Altuve were recognized as Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year for their efforts in rebuilding Houston after Hurricane Harvey and for Altuve's role in the Astros' World Series win.

2017: Maya Moore Inaugural Winner

In 2017, Maya Moore of the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx was the inaugural winner of the Sports Illustrated award.

2018: Swimsuit Line Launched

In 2018, Sports Illustrated launched a branded swimsuit line in conjunction with its Swimsuit Issue.

2018: Sports Illustrated Sold to Authentic Brands Group

In 2018, Sports Illustrated was sold to Authentic Brands Group (ABG) after Time Inc. was sold to Meredith Corporation.

2018: Sports Illustrated Sold to Meredith Corporation

In 2018, Sports Illustrated was sold to Meredith Corporation through its acquisition of Time Inc.

2018: John Cena honored with the Muhammad Ali Legacy Award

In 2018, WWE professional wrestler John Cena was honored with the Sports Illustrated's Muhammad Ali Legacy Award.

2018: Golden State Warriors Won Award

In 2018, the Golden State Warriors won Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year award as a team for winning their third NBA Title in four years.

June 2019: Publishing Rights Licensed to theMaven, Inc.

In June 2019, the rights to publish the Sports Illustrated editorial operations were licensed to the digital media company theMaven, Inc. under a 10-year contract, with Ross Levinsohn as CEO.

October 2019: Chris Stone Stepped Down

In October 2019, Chris Stone stepped down as editor-in-chief of Sports Illustrated.

January 2020: Editorial Partnership with The Hockey News

In January 2020, Sports Illustrated announced an editorial partnership with The Hockey News, focusing on syndication of NHL-related coverage.

September 2021: Maven Acquired The Spun

In September 2021, Maven, known as The Arena Group, acquired the New Jersey–based sports news website The Spun, which would integrate into Sports Illustrated.

2021: Partnership with Morning Read and iHeartMedia

In 2021, Sports Illustrated announced a partnership with Morning Read for golf coverage and partnered with iHeartMedia to distribute and co-produce podcasts.

2021: Tom Brady Won Award

In 2021, Tom Brady won Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year award for his Super Bowl 55 win.

2022: ABG Announced Ventures

In 2022, ABG announced non-editorial ventures including an apparel line for JCPenney and resort hotels in Orlando and Punta Cana.

September 2023: Partnership with Travel + Leisure

In September 2023, Sports Illustrated delved deeper into the resort world through a new partnership with Travel + Leisure.

November 27, 2023: Futurism Alleged AI-Generated Articles

On November 27, 2023, Futurism published an article alleging that Sports Illustrated was publishing AI-generated articles credited to AI-generated authors, prompting controversy and internal criticism.

2023: Deion Sanders Won Award

In 2023, Deion Sanders won Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year award for his coaching of the football team at the University of Colorado Boulder.

January 5, 2024: Arena Group Missed Licensing Payment

On January 5, 2024, The Arena Group missed a $3.75 million quarterly licensing payment to Authentic Brands Group.

January 2024: The Arena Group's License Terminated

In January 2024, Authentic Brands Group terminated The Arena Group's license to operate Sports Illustrated after the company missed a quarterly licensing payment, which led to layoffs of the publication's editorial staff.

March 2024: Publishing Rights Licensed to Minute Media

In March 2024, Authentic Brands Group licensed the publishing rights to Minute Media in a 10-year deal to revive the print and digital editions of Sports Illustrated.

May 2024: Failed Print Copy Delivery

In May 2024, Sports Illustrated failed to deliver a print copy of the publication to its subscribers for the first time in the magazine's 70-year history, according to the New York Post’s Josh Kosman.

May 17, 2024: New York Post reports SI failed to deliver print copy

On May 17, 2024, Josh Kosman of the New York Post reported that Sports Illustrated failed to deliver a print copy of the publication for the month to its subscribers for the first time in the magazine's 70-year history.