Kevin Love and Bryce Harper, step on up and prepare to be ogled.
It’s that time of the year when hypothetical queries such as “I wonder what a top-flight NBA big man looks like in the buff?” are answered by simply visiting a newsstand.
As the weather warms, barbecues fill neighborhoods with the intoxicating aroma of dinners being prepared.
Similarly,
Yes, it is indeed time for the Body Issue, a magazine issue that is as heralded and ballyhooed as Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit presentation, which for its own part became a cornerstone of pop culture in 1964.
ESPN reports 24 athletes will don birthday suits for the issue, which will hit the Internet on July 6 and newsstands on July 10.
Among the most notable are the aforementioned Love and Harper—an NBA walking double-double machine and a slugger whose at-bats produce batting practice-type bombs—as well as Odell Beckham Jr. (NY Giants), Brittney Griner (Phoenix Mercury), DeAndre Jordan (LA Clippers), the U.S. women’s national team’s Ali Krieger, tennis star Stan Wawrinka and Olympic standouts Aly Raisman and Natalie Coughlin.
Each name peppers an issue that continues to grow in popularity, nearly ripping headlines away from similar SI fare that once astounded with models and the stunning locales in which they were photographed.
By 2009, ESPN the Magazine would answer SI’s scantily clad edition with the promise of athletes completely naked—each posed modestly to infuse a modicum of discretion into the images.
Through the years the list of athletes dropping it all has grown to become a veritable cavalcade of stars: Serena Williams, Dwight Howard, Hope Solo, Ronda Rousey, Colin Kaepernick and Michael Phelps are just a few who fanned the flames of hype for the publication.
When all else fails, pose gorgeous and interesting people as close to nude as feasibly possible—at least that’s the thinking behind two of the most
And from the start the Body Issue has been a success. With CNBC at the time, Darren Rovell wrote in Oct. 2009, “The issue sold 35 percent more ads than the issue that ran in the same week last year.”
It seems we love our sports stars, but love them more if they lose those confining jerseys they are wont to wear.
Holding onto a prolific cash cow, ESPN the Magazine continues to milk what is a seemingly never-ending cast of athletes who are eager to show it all.
And the reason, of course, varies from athlete to athlete. But there is no denying the end result is a boost to the brand, whether it be to boost the athlete or the league in which they dominate.
Harper spoke to just that, via ESPN: “I've always wanted to do the Body Issue. I want to put baseball out there.” (The MLB reaching new audiences with polarizing marketing? That’s a thought.)
But rest assured that the entity that never has to worry about slumping sales is sex appeal.
And we need to be fine with it, because things such as the swimsuit and body issue will become far more prevalent and, I can presume, promiscuous.
Call it a problem of ubiquitous noise in our daily lives. We all walk around with infinite knowledge bumping around in our pockets, bringing it out to read a book, play a game or find out who adorned the first Body Issue cover (Serena Williams).
Sadly, the only things that excite anymore are the inflammatory and the only things that sell are the ones that arouse.
The seventh issue of sports bodies will hit the Internet and the world, which will inevitably lead to clicking and flipping, depending on how you take your medium.
The nation will devour the annual curio frantically, wanting desperately to be in the know like other sports fans.
With it, ESPN the Magazine has its newest slate of sports maestros to flaunt for masses to admire. And I can’t possibly hate on the notion, because it’s so brilliantly simple.
Feature beloved athletes who are already adored in your magazine, just lose the clothes.
