It’s no secret that getting to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated is one of the most prestigious honors in sports. And now, the magazine has taken that honor a step further with this week’s issue featuring the U.S. Women’s World Cup Champions. They published a set of 25 unique covers, one with each member of the team’s 23 players along with one for head coach Jill Ellis. The 25th one is a team-focused version for subscribers.
The magazine’s managing editor, Chris Stone, talked about the decision to make 25 unique covers, something the publication has never done before:
“The USWNT has plenty of recognizable, even famous names, but we couldn’t think of a group so thoroughly identified with a team as this one. We could go two ways: a team shot, which seemed a little conventional here, or something different and fresh: honoring not just one or two players, but all 23 of them with their own cover.”
Per a Sports Illustrated spokesman, the magazine has never done more than six different covers, which were all regional covers. This week’s unique issues will be distributed around the country.