3 Ways To Help You Find Freelance Jobs In Football

If you’re a freelancer, chances are that you’re always going to be on the lookout for new jobs. So how do you go about finding new clients on a regular basis? There are lots of ways, but thought I’d point out three methods I think can bring some degree of success. A caveat, these can be applied to not just freelancers that operate in football media, but across any sector.

Photo by Thomas Serer on Unsplash

Social Media

Social Media can play a big role in not only finding opportunities, but also allowing hirers to discover you. On Twitter, why don’t you state in your bio that you’re a freelancer? For example ‘Freelance Football Analyst’ or ‘Freelance illustrator available to hire. Specialise in football. Email: joebloggs@gmail.com.’ It may seem simple, but it will mean your name shows up higher in the search bar.

Post regularly on the likes of Twitter and LinkedIn about being available for freelance work. There are many effective ways you can demonstrate your value to potential hirers, for example, posting client testimonials and links to your previous work. In comparison to Twitter, LinkedIn is far less cloggy and I think that is an opportunity for you to take advantage of. Not many people actually post regularly on Linkedin, my theory is because they think, their employers will think, that they are angling for a new job. Or maybe they don’t want their views or opinions visible to colleagues or their bosses! As a freelancer, you don’t have that issue, shout loud about your achievements, testimonials, or views in the industry you’re in. It helps build authority.

The search function is powerful, you can search for key words to pick up posts that potential clients have posted, for example if an editor is looking for a football writer. Maybe in the search bar, key in ‘freelance football writer’ and you may see an editor of a magazine calling for pitches.

Freelance Football Opps Newsletter

I believe our newsletter is a great resource to help you connect with freelance gigs in the sport. Every week we scour the internet, social media and all job sites for the best paid freelance work in football media. We also feature jobs that are sent it to us, for example The Bundesliga and Scottish football club Rangers are just two huge names in the sport using this platform to get their vacancies seen by the right people.

The main areas we focus on finding and sharing are in writing, design, video/audio and social media jobs. Alongside these, permanent roles and internships.

Whether you’re just starting out in the football industry or have many years of experience, this newsletter will provide you with a great network of potential employers and co-workers. Don’t just take my word for it though, here’s a couple of testimonials:

⚽ “I’ve been using Freelance Football Opportunities for around 6 months and it’s been one of the greatest contributors to my freelance career. I’ve got 3 jobs so far, but it’s not so much the jobs itself that I admire so much from the whole process, it’s more the idea that much of the dreaded job search is done for me. This industry is too competitive and too different to seek out the jobs that are actually hiring. That’s what I love that most.” Grant McQuillan (Content Editor at CheckdMedia)

⚽ “Freelance Football Opps has given me countless opportunities within the footballing industry and several contacts that I can now reach out too. I would not be in this industry without the work this newsletter does. It saves me all the time it would take to scour social media looking for freelance positions and puts it all in one place. Couldn’t ask for a better resource”. Yara El-Shaboury (Digital Writer and Content Curator at Sky Sports, Eurosport and Stats Perform)

Cold Calling/Email

Cold calling or emailing, can be a great way of making new relationships and potentially finding work. Agencies are often on the lookout for freelancers, so it’s worth contacting them directly to ask if you can be of any assistance. If you’re a writer, take some time to go through publication websites, some even include pitching guides. For example, British football magazine, When Saturday Comes, have a detailed pitching guide on their website, allowing you to prepare in the best possible way.

Rather than pasting the same email across the board, try to do a bit of research and tailor each email to the company/agency you’re contacting. Find the name of the person who’s likely to handle recruiting freelancers.