The Blizzard

What The Blizzard does

The Blizzard is a UK-based quarterly football (soccer) magazine founded in 2010/2011 by Jonathan Wilson and a cooperative of specialist football writers. It publishes four issues per year (March, June, September, December) focused on long-form coverage of tactics, politics, and culture in global football, and had reached Issue 61 by June 2026. Operations are split between a London editorial base and a Sunderland registered office.

The publication's product set centres on a direct-to-consumer commerce operation built on a WordPress platform, selling individual issues (£6–£13), annual digital subscriptions (£20), and print+digital bundles (£40), alongside a books line and branded merchandise. Free content — including article samplers, long-form "Writing" pieces, quizzes, and two original podcasts (Greatest Games and The Blizzard) — is used as a top-of-funnel acquisition layer. International subscribers are served via a separate EU fulfilment portal operated with Forward Press, and a sub-brand, The Squall, extends the editorial remit into a second publication property.

The business model is a niche consumer-magazine D2C subscription and single-issue retailer, monetised through subscription fees, back-issue and merchandise sales, and a small but presumably meaningful share of revenue from book sales. There are no advertising or enterprise customer relationships disclosed, and the company is privately held with no funding events reported in the data.

Name

The Blizzard

Legal name

The Blizzard

Website

https://theblizzard.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Blizzard is a UK-based quarterly football magazine founded in 2010/2011 by Jonathan Wilson and a cooperative of writers, selling print and digital subscriptions directly to consumers worldwide alongside books, merchandise, podcasts, and a sub-brand called The Squall.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Magazine Publishing

NAICS

Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Sports & Recreation Magazines (MPAJAEAJ)

Keywords

• Football journalism
• Sports magazine publishing
• Quarterly print magazine
• Digital subscriptions
• Football merchandise

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Print Magazine Sales: Physical quarterly publication sold as single issues at £6-13, with bundles available
2. Digital Subscriptions: Annual digital subscription providing access to current issue plus 12 back issues (3 years). Legacy subscribers retain full archive access.
3. Print + Digital Subscriptions: Combined subscription at £40/year including four print editions delivered to door plus digital access
4. Books: Books providing same editorial freedom as issues for writers to cover subjects they're passionate about
5. Merchandise: Prints, t-shirts, mugs and other merchandise for football fans
6. Advertising: Flexible and creative advertising packages including space in magazine and podcast/social media opportunities

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Blizzard is a quarterly football publication sold in print and digital formats, produced by a cooperative of top-class football writers who cover long-form subjects unavailable in mainstream sports media. It sells subscriptions, single issues, year bundles, books, and branded merchandise directly to football enthusiasts via its own e-commerce website, with digital editions delivered as PDF and EPUB downloads.

Product overview

The Blizzard is a quarterly football publication offered through a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core product is the quarterly magazine (Issues), available in print and digital formats (PDF, EPUB). Supporting products include Bundles (yearly collections), Books, and Merchandise. Free offerings include Samplers (sample editions), Writing (selected articles), Podcasts (Greatest Games and Blizzard series), and Quizzes. Subscriptions (Digital and Print+Digital) provide the primary revenue model with access to current and archived issues, while The Flurry email newsletter maintains ongoing reader engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Squall: A related 'breezy brother' publication to The Blizzard featuring original writing

Products and services

• The Blizzard Quarterly Issues A quarterly football publication containing long-form journalism articles written by top-class football authors, published in March, June, September, and December each year in print and digital formats.
• Bundles Yearly collections of issues providing a complete set of four quarterly publications for a given year at discounted rates compared with individual purchases.
• Books Books published by The Blizzard featuring football writing on subjects important to the authors, complementing the magazine's editorial style.
• Merchandise Branded items including prints, t-shirts, mugs and other products for football fans.
• Digital Subscription Annual digital subscription at £20/year providing access to the current issue plus 12 back issues, with 17% discount on single issues and 10% discount on collections.
• Print + Digital Subscription Combined annual subscription from £40/year offering four print editions delivered to the door plus digital access, with 17% discount on single issues.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The Set Pieces: Long-form, narrative-driven football writing outlet covering culture, history and analysis; competes for the same cohort of readers seeking alternative, essayistic football journalism outside mainstream sports media.
• Mundial Magazine: UK-based football culture magazine combining long-form journalism with lifestyle/design, sold via direct subscriptions and stockists; comparable niche positioning, premium pricing, and direct-to-consumer model targeting design-conscious football fans.
• When Saturday Comes (WSC): Long-running UK football fanzine/magazine (founded 1986) publishing long-form, fan-led football journalism; structurally the closest analogue to The Blizzard's cooperative-style, narrative-led, paid-subscription model targeting 'thinking' football fans.
• These Football Times: UK-originated long-form football writing brand with paid digital magazine and merchandise, producing in-depth football stories for a similar 'thinking fan' audience and competing directly for attention and subscriptions in the same niche.
• The Football Pink: Independent UK online football publication producing long-form football writing and features with a similar writer-led editorial ethos and fan-focused reader base.

Broad incumbents

• FourFourTwo: Large, established mainstream football magazine brand with global digital audience and print editions; broader football coverage than The Blizzard but operates in the same paid football-media category with overlapping reader interest.
• The Athletic: Subscription-based digital sports media company with deep football coverage; competes for paying sports-media subscribers at a much larger scale and broader multi-sport remit, but addresses similar paid-content appetite in football.

Regional players

• 8 by 8 Magazine: US-based quarterly print and digital football publication offering long-form football writing and design-led features; comparable product/format and pricing, but primarily serves a North American audience distinct from The Blizzard's UK-anchored base.
• The Anfield Wrap: Independent Liverpool-focused football media with podcasts, video, and subscription content; comparable independent, fan-led football-media operating model but concentrated on a single club community rather than pan-football coverage.

Emerging players

• Tifo Football: Digital football-media brand producing explainer videos, podcasts and long-form tactical writing; younger digital-first content format overlapping with The Blizzard's podcast and feature-led strategy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/blzzrd
• Facebookfacebook.com/blzzrd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-blizzard

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Blizzard