If you’re not familiar with the folks at Stack, you might want to check them out. They do a great job of discovering indie magazine titles and making them available to a wider audience.
Recently, Stack pulled together their list of the 10 indie sports magazine everyone should read, and they found some true gems.
“Sport is a popular category for independent publishers, and the diverse range of titles we come across demonstrate a real enthusiasm and fandom for the different types of games and sporting activities,” explains Grace Wang. “We’re also seeing more and more publishers treat their favourite sports with artful, philosophical, political and extremely obsessive consideration, using the experience of athletics as a medium for engaging with others and finding meaning in the world around them.”
For example consider Racquet, a quarterly that goes far beyond the “sport” of tennis and explores the art, culture and style that flourish in the niche.
“We’ve read a personal piece by Andrea Petkovic on her rival, and found out the true relationship between a clothing brand and its muse — their excellent writing and beautiful design will make you see tennis like you’ve never seen before,” Wong continues.
Many of the picks are sport-specific, but others like Good Sport offer a much wider view of the role of athletics and life.
“Through the most mundane physical activities, like running or playing basketball with the locals, the magazine’s superb photography and personal narratives compels even the most inactive reader,” Wong explains.
We are seeing some truly beautiful niche magazines in just about every market category these days – food, travel, popular culture, even an indie all about water – and continue to support this consumer movement away from mass market to the niche title. Clearly, the prognosticators at the end of last year were right…this IS a golden age for magazines. And we appreciate Stack for helping more people discover the print titles that relate to their own passions.