According to the 2026 Bitesize Career survey, a job in sport is amongst the most desirable future careers for a teen today.
But with such a limited number of places for players, it can be difficult to see a way in without being a top-of-the-line athlete.
So, here at BBC Bitesize, we sat down with Emily Marshall, a digital content producer for the England Women’s Cricket team, to discuss her journey so far, the skills you need for a career in sport and the type of jobs available off the pitch.
Kimberley: Let's take it back to where all started for you. How did you get into working for the England women's cricket team?
Emily: I like kind of was into a load of sports at uni, and then I joined the university radio station and then also was an intern at Warwickshire Cricket club. Yeah, they were looking for people to take over their women's socials and I loved cricket. I'd loved cricket since I was 15, so I was like, yeah, I'll give that a go. Um, and then yeah, got into it from there and worked with Warwickshire for a couple of years while I was at uni, freelancing, and then very luckily the year I graduated, The Hundred had its first year and I managed to secure a content creator job, um, with Birmingham Phoenix that year. And yeah, that was with an agency. And then I stayed at that agency, um, for three years. And then I got this job and just found a passion for cricket and then a passion for, I guess, social media as well. And women's sport, definitely. Like, I think I kind of fell into the social role because all I wanted to do was just be part of women's sport.
Kimberley: You've obviously got a massive summer coming up. What can we expect from you over the coming months?
Emily: Lots of content, hopefully, um, lots of showing off all the hard yards that the players are putting on in training and on the pitch. We love to do lots of training content, showcasing all the different players' skills, trying to get as close as possible to that, like pitch side stuff. So, like bowl throughs, net stuff and then showcasing how special like this tournament is going to be for the players. Like a World Cup really offers like a unique opportunity.
Kimberley: And what's it like working for England? That must be absolutely crazy.
Emily: Yeah, it's very, very cool. We get to travel the world, and I get to work with some amazing, amazing athletes and amazing people, and I get to be as close as possible to their stories and their lives and the cricket. And it's just like as a cricket fan as well, to like, be part of a professional sporting environment. It's like so special. And it's like, yeah, never lost on me how like cool it is to be as close as I am to the team and to major events and major tournaments.
Kimberley: And you're in such a unique position because you can bring the England cricket stories to life.
Emily: It helps that like we just spend so much time together, so you kind of get to know their stories, kind of like inside out, and you get to know them as people. And there's like things that I can then pick up on that I'm like, okay like, let's tell the world this. You do need the players to trust you and to be close enough to them where they feel comfortable to be able to tell their story. But it's yeah, so special to be like, to be able to produce some amazing features on some things that players otherwise maybe wouldn't get the chance to talk about or want to talk, want to tell their fans about but don't really know how to.
Kimberley: And I just wonder then, for anyone who wants to work in sport but isn't going to be an athlete. What advice would you give to them?
Emily: There's so many different routes that people can take. Like you, you can do anything almost like social media, operations, like logistics, physio, S&C, psychologists. There's so many different routes that are in our backroom staff that do the same things I do, but in their different specialties. If you have a passion, it really like can take you anywhere. Like I never in a million dreams imagined it would take me here to be able to be like part of a World Cup.
Kimberley: Oh, Emily, it all sounds amazing. We're so excited for you this summer. Thank you so much for talking to us.
Emily: Thanks for having me.
How can you get a job in sport?
For Emily, a career in sport was something she fell into, driven by love and passion as opposed to a well laid plan. Whilst studying Geography and Town Planning at university (a degree she says is “sort of” useful in her day job), Emily got involved in her university radio station, which in turn led to a position interning at Warwickshire Cricket Club – handling the social content for their women’s team.
This proved to be a “best of both worlds" situation for Emily, marrying a love of cricket she’d held since she was 15 and a passion for content creation and social media. It also speaks to the importance of seeking out and grasping opportunities wherever available, looking for gaps in the market and developing the skills required to fill them.
In Emily’s case, this was part luck and part timing, as she described sport team socials as being in their “infancy” at the point she entered the industry, allowing her to use the skills she’d developed on her personal profile to create a niche and a skillset that was well suited to the needs of the industry.
What are the most important skills and attributes for a job in sport?
With careers in sport proving so desirable for young people, we’d have been remiss not to ask what Emily felt were the key skills and qualities you need to break into the industry.
“My best piece of advice for anyone is just be yourself”, she explained, feeling this authenticity was vital to building trusting relationships with those around her.
“You need the players to trust you and to be close enough to them where they feel comfortable enough to tell their story.”
Trust was a key factor of what Emily describes as her proudest piece of content yet, a piece with England cricketer Em Arlott chronicling her experience with ADHD. Emily felt that the trust and respect she’d built with the players allowed for them to be more open and honest, with the focus on mental health and neurodiversity resonating strongly with audiences.
For Emily, all of this comes back to one simple guiding light – passion. Passion for sport, passion for socials, and passion for telling player’s stories to the fans that support them. Want to find a career you can feel passionate about? Check out this quiz from BBC Bitesize Careers, to find what the perfect job is for you!
What jobs can you do in sport without being an athlete?
Emily was keen to stress that whilst passion and interest is key, working in sport does not require being ‘sporty’. A lover of cricket and a keen netball player, Emily proclaimed herself as “nowhere near good enough” to be a professional athlete but has still been able to leverage the skills and qualities she has into a career in the game she loves.
Whilst social media was Emily’s chosen path, she explained that there are “so many routes” into a career in sport. She name-checked operations, physio, logistics and psychology as just some of the routes that can lead you to a career in sport, with a whole host of other paths available too!
Sports teams are like many other businesses – needing lawyers, accountants, administrators and a whole host of others to keep things ticking over. It really does take a village!
To get a taste of just some of the roles available in the world of sport, check out BBC Bitesize ‘Careers in sport’ collection.
Where can I learn more about cricket and future careers?
If you've come down with a case of Cricket Fever, there's all sorts to keep you engaged right across the BBC. BBC Sport Cricket is a one-stop shop for all things cricket, you can keep up with the Women’s T20 World Cup live or on-demand with BBC iPlayer, or to learn more about cricket check out these great resources from BBC Bitesize.
For more career’s advice and support, head over to BBC Bitesize Careers, where you can find loads of helpful videos and resources.
And if you want to read more about incredible women making waves in the world of cricket, check out the ECB's 'The 53', which celebrates women making an impact on the game at every level.
This article was published in June 2026
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