About The Athletic
The Athletic is a digital subscription sports media outlet that provides in-depth reporting, analysis, and commentary on hundreds of professional and collegiate teams across the United States and internationally. Founded in 2016, it built its reputation on hiring prominent beat writers and delivering long-form, ad-free sports journalism through its website and mobile apps.([ycombinator.com](https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/the-athletic?utm_source=openai)) In 2022, The Athletic was acquired by The New York Times Company and now operates as part of the Times’ broader portfolio of subscription products.([businesswire.com](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220106005684/en/The-New-York-Times-Company-to-Acquire-The-Athletic?utm_source=openai))
A charge from The Athletic on a card statement—sometimes appearing via PayPal with a truncated descriptor like “PAYPAL *THEATHLE”—typically represents a recurring subscription payment for access to its digital content, or a renewal at the end of a promotional period. Because it is a digital-only service, it commonly codes under a digital goods media merchant category such as MCC 5815.([docs.stripe.com](https://docs.stripe.com/connect/setting-mcc?utm_source=openai)) Charges are usually billed monthly or annually depending on the plan selected at signup.
If you have questions about a charge from The Athletic, the best first step is to log into your account on their website or app and review your subscription status, renewal date, and billing history. From there you can update or cancel your subscription and contact their support team if you believe a payment is in error. If you do not recognize the account tied to your email, you can use their help/contact options to search by transaction details, or, as a last resort, dispute the charge through your card issuer or PayPal after attempting to resolve it directly with The Athletic’s support.