Cancellation guide · No. 4News & Publications

How to Cancel The Athletic in 2026

Last verified 9 days ago · Re-audited every 90 days

Verified

If you were billed directly by The Athletic (card/PayPal on the site), the cancel button does exist in account Settings, but it is buried behind a 4-screen retention funnel with a de-emphasized "Continue to Cancel" button, a discount offer, a mandatory reason survey, and a final "I Changed My Mind" screen. If you subscribed through Apple, Google Play, or PayPal, you cannot cancel on The Athletic's site at all and must go to that platform instead, which trips up many users. There are no refunds for the unused period, and there is no public support phone line.

Cancellation summaryMedium

Direct cancellation page

Go straight to The Athletic's cancel page ↗

Cancel now ↗

Methods accepted: OnlineEmail
Average time: ~8min
Effective in: Immediately

Why this is harder than it should be

The Athletic is the New York Times' sports-subscription site, and cancelling it is more annoying than it should be because the difficulty depends entirely on who is billing you. If your card or PayPal was charged directly by The Athletic, the cancel button does exist in account Settings, but it is hidden behind a four-screen retention funnel: a low-contrast "Continue to Cancel" button, a discount or "add free days" offer, a mandatory "why are you leaving" survey, and a final "I Changed My Mind" guilt screen. If instead you subscribed through Apple, Google Play, or PayPal, the website gives you no cancel button at all and silently expects you to cancel in that store, which is exactly where people get stuck and keep getting charged. On top of that, The Athletic issues no refunds for the unused part of your term, and several Better Business Bureau complaints describe surprise annual renewals and a monthly-to-annual switch with no easy phone line to dispute them.

Step-by-step

Verified June 25, 2026

01
First, figure out who actually bills you. Check your bank/card or app-store statement. If it reads 'The Athletic' or 'PayPal The Athletic', you were billed directly and can cancel on the website (steps below). If it shows 'Apple.com/Bill' you must cancel via Apple; if it shows 'Google', you must cancel via Google Play; pure PayPal subscriptions are cancelled inside PayPal.
Watch outApp Store, Google Play and PayPal subscriptions CANNOT be cancelled on The Athletic's website or by emailing The Athletic. The site will not show a cancel button for these (third-party billing lock).
02
For a directly billed subscription, log in at theathletic.com (or nytimes.com/athletic) with your email and password.
Watch outIf your access came bundled with a New York Times All Access subscription, you do not cancel The Athletic separately. You manage that subscription in your NYT account (nytimes.com/account), and cancelling NYT removes Athletic access.
03
Open your profile menu (your initials/photo, top right) and go to Settings (theathletic.com/settings) or Account, then find the Subscription / Billing section.
Watch outThe candidate URL theathletic.com/account also reaches account management, but the Subscription cancel control lives under Settings -> Subscription.
04
Click 'Cancel Subscription'.
Watch outOn the first retention screen the real action is a secondary, low-contrast 'Continue to Cancel' button while a brighter button keeps you subscribed. Read the buttons carefully and pick the muted one.
05
Decline the retention offer. The Athletic typically dangles a discount or bonus time (for example 'Add 30 days free' or a discounted renewal). Choose to continue cancelling instead of 'Get Offer'.
Watch outAccepting the offer restarts/extends your paid subscription rather than cancelling it.
06
Complete the mandatory 'main reason for cancelling' survey to advance. Pick any reason; it does not change the outcome.
Watch outYou cannot skip this screen; there is no way to reach the final cancel step without answering.
07
On the final confirmation screen, ignore the prominent 'I Changed My Mind' / 'Keep Subscription' button and confirm the cancellation.
Watch outThis last screen uses confirm-shaming and button placement to nudge you back. Cancellation is not done until you see explicit confirmation that auto-renew is off.
08
Verify it stuck: your Subscription/Settings page should now show the plan ending on a specific date with no future renewal. Save or screenshot that confirmation.
Watch outYou keep access until the end of the current paid period. The Athletic does NOT refund the unused remainder, so there is no money saved by cancelling mid-cycle versus right before renewal.
09
If the site will not let you cancel a directly billed plan, email support@theathletic.com stating you want to cancel and asking for written confirmation.
Watch outThere is no published customer-service phone number; BBB complainants report only automated email responses and no phone line for billing/refund disputes.

Refund policy

Subscriptions are non-refundable. Cancelling stops future renewals; access continues until the end of the already-paid billing period, with no refund for the unused remainder.

Free trial trap

The Athletic heavily promotes deeply discounted intro offers (e.g. $1/month for a year or '6 months on us' that still requires a ~$29.99 first-year payment). These auto-convert to full price and auto-renew; BBB complaints describe renewals charged with no advance notice, including plans switched from monthly to annual.

What to do if they refuse to cancel

If The Athletic keeps charging you after you cancelled, or refuses to stop an unauthorized renewal: - **Get it in writing.** Email support@theathletic.com demanding cancellation and a written confirmation, and keep the dated screenshot of your Settings page showing auto-renew off. There is no published support phone number, so email is your paper trail. - **Right platform, right cancel.** If you were billed via Apple (Settings -> [your name] -> Subscriptions), Google Play (Subscriptions), or PayPal (automatic payments), cancel there; The Athletic cannot stop those charges for you. - **Dispute the charge.** If a renewal was unauthorized or you cancelled and were still billed, request a chargeback through your bank or card issuer and attach your cancellation email/screenshot. App-store purchases can also be disputed via Apple 'Report a Problem' or Google Play refunds. - **Escalate to regulators.** File with the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov (auto-renewal without clear notice may violate the federal Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act). The Athletic Media Company is based in California, so the California Attorney General (oag.ca.gov) is the relevant regulator under California's auto-renewal law; New York and Vermont residents can use their own state AG and auto-renewal statutes. - **BBB complaint.** The Athletic Media Company has an open BBB profile (San Francisco); a complaint there sometimes prompts a response when email alone does not.

Reader questions

Frequently asked questions

I cancelled but I'm still being charged. Why?

Almost always because you cancelled in the wrong place. If your statement shows 'Apple.com/Bill', 'Google', or 'PayPal', cancelling on The Athletic's website (or emailing The Athletic) does nothing. You must cancel inside Apple Subscriptions, Google Play Subscriptions, or PayPal automatic payments respectively. Only subscriptions that read 'The Athletic' on your card statement are cancelled on theathletic.com.

Will I get a refund if I cancel early?

No. The Athletic's subscriptions are non-refundable. When you cancel you keep access until the end of the period you already paid for, but you are not refunded for the unused remainder. Because of that, you can safely use the service until the renewal date and cancel just before it renews. If you were hit with an unauthorized renewal, pursue a card chargeback or app-store dispute rather than expecting a voluntary refund.

I get The Athletic through my New York Times subscription. How do I cancel just The Athletic?

You generally can't cancel The Athletic on its own if it came bundled in New York Times All Access. The Athletic is included with that NYT plan, so it is managed and cancelled through your New York Times account (nytimes.com/account), and cancelling the NYT subscription is what removes Athletic access. Only a standalone, directly billed Athletic subscription is cancelled in The Athletic's own Settings page.

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