As Chief Sports Correspondent for The Times, Matt Lawton redefines sports journalism through hard-hitting investigations into governance, doping, and fan culture. With 30+ industry awards, his work drives policy changes across global sports organizations.
“The most dangerous phrase in sports is ‘This is how we’ve always done it.’” – Lawton’s 2022 TEDx talk on investigative ethics
We’ve followed Matt Lawton’s distinguished career as one of Britain’s most respected sports journalists. Beginning at the Western Daily Press in 1993, Lawton honed his craft across major outlets like the Daily Express, The Daily Telegraph, and Daily Mail before ascending to his current role as Chief Sports Correspondent at The Times. His trajectory reflects a deliberate shift from general reporting to investigative sports journalism, marked by groundbreaking exclusives that often transcend the field of play to examine systemic issues in global sports.
This investigative piece exposed the toxic fallout from Brentford FC’s efforts to identify banned supporters, detailing how one fan received literal harassment through postal threats. Lawton leveraged police reports and anonymized interviews to reconstruct the club’s internal security protocols and their unintended consequences. The article sparked national debates about football governance and fan accountability, cited in Parliament during discussions about supporter rights.
Lawton dissected systemic corruption in international sports bodies, tracing financial mismanagement across three continents. Through leaked documents and whistleblower accounts, he revealed how governance failures enabled embezzlement in Olympic committees. The report prompted resignations at two national sports federations and remains a benchmark for accountability journalism in sports business coverage.
This deep dive into anti-doping enforcement combined forensic analysis of lab records with athlete testimonials. Lawton demonstrated how loopholes in testing protocols allowed continued PED use, leading to WADA policy reforms. The story’s impact extended beyond sports, cited in medical ethics conferences for its examination of institutional complicity.
Lawton prioritizes stories exposing structural flaws in sports institutions. A 2023 pitch about unequal revenue distribution in women’s football leagues succeeded because it tied financial disparities to governance failures, mirroring his 2018 investigation into Olympic corruption. Avoid surface-level event summaries.
His 2021 Brentford story relied on police reports and postal records. Successful pitches should include access to leaked documents, legal filings, or verified data sets. A 2022 scoop about rugby concussion protocols originated from a whistleblower’s medical database access.
While based in the UK, Lawton’s work addresses international systems. A 2024 pitch about doping in Asian cycling federations gained traction by connecting it to European sponsorship deals. Regional stories must demonstrate cross-border impacts.
“Lawton’s reporting doesn’t just break news—it breaks paradigms.” – British Journalism Awards panel, 2020
At PressContact, we aim to help you discover the most relevant journalists for your PR efforts. If you're looking to pitch to more journalists who write on Sports, here are some other real estate journalist profiles you may find relevant:
