Competing for Time: How Elite Athletes Can Balance Training, Competitions, and Brand Management
If you are a professional athlete, time is one of the most valuable commodities.
With demanding training schedules, travel commitments, and the pressure of competition, adding brand management to the mix can feel overwhelming. However, in today’s digital landscape, personal branding is no longer optional—it’s essential.
Athletes who effectively manage their brand can secure sponsorships, build long-term financial stability, and create opportunities that extend beyond their playing careers. So, how do you balance it all without compromising performance? Here’s a structured approach to managing your time efficiently.
Understanding the challenge of why time feels scarce
The life of an elite athlete is packed with obligations:
Training sessions that demand peak physical and mental effort.
Competitions that require travel, often internationally.
Recovery time to maintain performance and prevent injury.
Media responsibilities, including interviews, press conferences, and social media content.
Brand partnerships, sponsorship commitments, and personal business ventures.
With so many demands, effective time management becomes crucial. It’s already a difficult life you lead, so think about how you can make smart decisions to give you the best of both worlds - performance and commercial.
You must become accustomed to prioritising what needs your direct attention
Not all brand management tasks require your hands-on involvement. The key is knowing where to focus your energy and what to delegate.
Non-Negotiables: Activities that require your direct presence—training, competition, personal appearances.
High-Impact Brand Work: Content creation, engagement with fans, and strategic brand decisions.
Delegatable Tasks: Scheduling posts, responding to routine emails, performance analytics.
A practical example? Marcus Rashford’s approach to branding. His team (his brothers actually) handles logistics, but he remains personally involved in content creation and brand alignment to ensure authenticity. You don’t need to be an expert in everything, you just need to smart enough to build a team of experts around you. And no doubt you have many skilled partners already in your own personal network.
Smart athletes leverage technology: Work Smarter, Not Harder
Technology can be a game-changer in brand management.
Social Media Scheduling – Platforms like Hootsuite or Buffer allow you to schedule posts in advance, ensuring a consistent online presence without daily effort.
Content Repurposing – A single interview can be turned into multiple posts, short videos, or blog content. Think of Lewis Hamilton, whose behind-the-scenes content is efficiently repurposed across multiple platforms.
AI-Assisted Branding – Tools like ChatGPT can help generate captions, email responses, and even script video content to save you time.
“The biggest killer is content creation,
I just don’t have time - or energy - to do it when we get home”
Try the “Batching” method
A structured content strategy will help you maintain an active brand presence without disrupting your athletic performance. AContent strategy is your game plan for what you post, why you post it, and how it helps you grow your brand.
Just like in sport, you don’t just show up and hope for the best—you train with purpose, follow a game plan, and execute with consistency. But just as with your training, it does take purposeful effort, and will compound returns over time.
Batch create content on Off-Days
Record multiple videos in one sitting.
Write and schedule a month’s worth of posts in advance.
Capture “day in the life” content while training to maximise efficiency.
It is a really common strategy - both with athlete personal brands and at large scale commercial level - to schedule pre-recorded content during peak competition/seasonal moments to maintain fan engagement without losing focus.
Collaboration & delegation: Build a support team
You don’t have to do it all alone. A trusted team can manage different aspects of your brand, leaving you free to focus on your sport.
👥 Who to Have in Your Team?
A Social Media Manager – To handle scheduling and audience engagement.
A Brand Consultant – To guide sponsorship negotiations and public image.
A Virtual Assistant – To manage admin tasks like emails and meeting scheduling.
Your agent/agency will likely be able to support emplying help here, but if not reach out and First Five Marketing can connect you with one of network of experts.
Top Tip - Set realistic goals to avoid burnout
Rather than trying to “do it all,” set achievable goals:
🎯 Short-Term: Post three high-quality updates per week rather than daily, focusing on quality over quantity.
🎯 Mid-Term: Secure one solid brand partnership that aligns with your values.
🎯 Long-Term: Establish a post-career transition plan with branding as a key pillar.
Balancing training, competitions, and brand management is tough, but it’s achievable with the right approach. The most successful athletes treat brand-building like training—consistent, strategic, and focused on long-term impact. It starts with smart prioritization, putting energy into high-impact areas rather than trying to do everything at once. Technology can be a game-changer, with scheduling tools and AI helping to streamline content creation and engagement. Strategic delegation is also key—building a small team or working with trusted partners can take pressure off without losing authenticity.
Most importantly, setting realistic goals ensures steady growth without burnout. By adopting these tactics, you can build a strong personal brand without compromising your performance.
