Athletes and sports competitors
SOC Code: 27-2021
Athletes and sports competitors carries a 21% AI exposure score (Medium automation risk), with a median annual wage of $62,360 and +5.5% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 19,100 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 21% AI exposure, Athletes and sports competitors sits 16 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 8% of them. It ranks among the more AI-resilient roles in the dataset.
Career outlook score
75/100
Athletes and sports competitors, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage C $62,360
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth B+ +5.5%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) A+ 21% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Athletes and sports competitors in the Medium band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Athletes and sports competitors keeps an No credential bar (109 of 832) and sits in Average (378 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where Athletes and sports competitors sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Athletes and sports competitors sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
21% Among the lowest lower than 92% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Athletes and sports competitors vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Athletes and sports competitors is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Athletes and sports competitors's Medium automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score below 40% reflects tasks anchored in physical dexterity, unstructured environments, or high-touch human interaction that current AI cannot reliably replicate.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 27-2021) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Athletes and sports competitors be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Athletes and sports competitors. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Assess performance following athletic competition, identifying strengths and weaknesses and making adjustments to improve future performance.
- 2. Maintain equipment used in a particular sport.
- 3. Attend scheduled practice or training sessions.
- 4. Maintain optimum physical fitness levels by training regularly, following nutrition plans, or consulting with health professionals.
- 5. Participate in athletic events or competitive sports, according to established rules and regulations.
- 6. Exercise or practice under the direction of athletic trainers or professional coaches to develop skills, improve physical condition, or prepare for competitions.
- 7. Receive instructions from coaches or other sports staff prior to events and discuss performance afterwards.
- 8. Represent teams or professional sports clubs, performing such activities as meeting with members of the media, making speeches, or participating in charity events.
- 9. Lead teams by serving as captain.
Key Skills Required
- Speaking
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Coordination
- Monitoring
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Reading Comprehension
- Social Perceptiveness
- Active Learning
- Persuasion
Knowledge Areas
- Administration and Management
- English Language
- Customer and Personal Service
- Personnel and Human Resources
- Communications and Media
- Education and Training
- Sales and Marketing
- Mathematics
- Public Safety and Security
- Administrative
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Athletes and sports competitors?
Athletes and sports competitors has an AI exposure score of 21%, indicating a medium level of automation risk. The majority of tasks in this role require human judgment, creativity, or physical presence that AI cannot easily replicate.
What is the job outlook for Athletes and sports competitors?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Athletes and sports competitors is projected to grow by 5.5% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 19,100 workers.
What skills are needed for Athletes and sports competitors?
Key skills for Athletes and sports competitors include Speaking, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, and others. Typical entry-level education is No formal educational credential.
How much do Athletes and sports competitors earn?
The median annual wage for Athletes and sports competitors is $62,360, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Athletes and sports competitors?
The typical entry-level education for Athletes and sports competitors is No formal educational credential. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Long-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Athletes and sports competitors?
Athletes and sports competitors roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Medium automation risk based on 9 analyzed tasks. Most tasks require human judgment and are resistant to automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Athletes and sports competitors: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (21% here).
- Automotive body and related repairers · AI exposure 21%
- Automotive glass installers and repairers · AI exposure 21%
- Boilermakers · AI exposure 21%
- Chemical equipment operators and tenders · AI exposure 21%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+5.5% here).
- Cooks, all other · growth +5.5%
- Dietitians and nutritionists · growth +5.5%
- Electrical and electronics repairers, powerhouse, substation, and relay · growth +5.5%
- Meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers · growth +5.5%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 26 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Athletes and sports competitors' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Athletes and sports competitors side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).