With smart phones now running Android, the Google OS, application developers are providing products and services for enthusiasts to carry around with them. Sports agents know that they need to be updates all the time, so it’s a good thing Android has so many apps for sports fans. And plenty of these applications are free. Here are 50 of the essential Android apps for sports fans:

Sports News

Get the latest information and news on some of your favorite sports. Be up to the minute, no matter where you are, with headlines, scores and more.

1. Live Scores: Get simple and fast stores for a number of sports, including NFL, NCAA, MLB, NBA and NHL.
2. Google Scoreboard: Want the latest schedules, scores and standings for your favorite basketball, football, baseball, soccer and college sports teams? Get it from Google Scoreboard. Also includes golf.
3. SportsTap: Great sports news portal for Android that offers access to NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA, NASCAR, tennis, golf and soccer.
4. College Football Headlines: Get the latest headlines from college football from the sports TV shows.
5. College Basketball News: Find out what’s happening in the world of college basketball, including interviews.
6. Sports News: ESPN offers this helpful sports news app for Android, updating automatically and providing the ability to share to Twitter and Facebook.
7. Scoreboard & News: Headlines, sports scores and more, from around the world — especially Europe.
8. BBC Sports News: Get the latest sports headlines and news from the BBC.
9. Fox Sports News: What you need to know about the latest happenings in the world of sports from Fox Sports.
10. Sky Sports News Widget: Sky News offers you the latest sports headlines, with an emphasis on football.
11. Real Fake Sports: This is a fun app that provides access to satire and parody sports news.

Tournaments

Keep up with tournament action, from March Madness with the NCAA to the World Cup.

12. World Cup – With Forum: This app keeps you up to date on the 2010 World Cup, including matches leading up to the main event, and forum support.
13. Enjoy World Cup: Countdown, schedule stats and more. Get ready for the World Cup!
14. 2010 World Cup: Get match reminders and share your comments with this Android application aimed at the World Cup.
15. Who’s in the Final?: This fun, interactive Android app is designed to help you map out different routes your team can take to the World Cup final.
16. Days to World Cup: Countdown the days to the world cup with this slick app.
17. News World Series Baseball: Follow the road to the World Series with this app that will keep you updated with records and chances.
18. Big East Basketball Tournament: Keep up with how the men and women in the Big East are doing with NCAA basketball competition.
19. Talk Hoops: Get the lowdown on the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, enjoying March Madness. (Includes pro basketball, too.)
20. Superbowl Soundboard: So it’s not about the football. It’s about the commercials. Some of the great commercials from Superbowls past.
21. Superbowl MVP: Pit your knowledge of Superbowl trivia against a machine.
22. Seer Android: This app is designed for tennis fans interested in Wimbledon. IBM offered last year, and will hopefully offer it again this year.
23. Aces Tournament Timer – Texas Hold’em: Keep track of poker tournaments with this tournament timer.

Professional Sports

Follow professional sports teams and players, keeping up with the latest news and stats.

24. NFL SuperFan: You can get this app to help you check stats and scores. If buy a subscription to NFL SuperFan on top of having the app, you get the bonus of being able to watch live streams of the Red Zone Channel and each NFL Sunday Ticket game.
25. AFL Live Scores: Interested in Australian football? This app will help you keep up with professional AFL scores live.
26. MLB Headlines: Get the latest professional baseball headlines from ESPN.
27. Baseball Scores: Get detailed box scores and play-by-play descriptions.
28. NBA Game Time Lite: Live scoring app keeps you updated on the latest action, and scouting features let you see what’s coming.
29. Livescore: Keep up with the latest live scores from professional soccer leagues around the world.
30. Soccer Score Centre: Stay up to date with league scores from around the world.
31. Tennis Math: Get tennis match scores and professional stats, helping you stay up to date.
32. Live Racing 2010: Formula 1 racing, lap by lap.
33. Horse Racing News: Keep updated on the professional horse racing circuit. Latest stats and information.

Individual Sports

Do you play sports? Keep track of your individual performance in your sports of choice.

34. SportsTracker: Monitor your own sports performance and outdoor activities with the help of this GPS sports application.
35. Workout Forge: Chain workouts together, and time your tabata, fartlek, circuit training or HIIT routines.
36. trainANDtrack! Lite: Train yourself, and track your progress. Even comes with an emergency SMS button in case you need help.
37. StopWatch: This simple Android app allows you a stopwatch to help with your individual training. Can run in the background and features tactile feedback.
38. DroidCaddie Golf: Great sports app for the amateur golfer looking to improve his or her game.
39. Golf ScoreKeeper: Keep track of your scores and stats, tracking your progress. Map golf courses with the help of a GPS function.
40. CaddieMe Free: Golf range finder to help you view the distance you need to reach the front of the green on a growing number of courses.
41. DiveLog: Diver? Use this app to keep a log of your dives, and map your locations.
42. Gaggle: Are you into paragliding, hang gliding or sail plane piloting? If so, this application is for you, offering GPS based flight information, and more.
43. World Series of Mahjong Lite: Test your Mahjong skills with international standard rule.
44. Snooker Scoreboard Lite: Track your snooker matches and stats.
45. Donkey Dealer: Great timer for poker games. Monitor blinds, and customize the timer to your requirements.

Fantasy

Use these Android apps to participate in fantasy sports leagues and keep track of how you are doing.

46. CBS Sports Pro Football: In addition to offering news and information, you can access your fantasy football team, keeping track of how your players are doing.
47. Razzball FB: Insider tips and information designed to help you win your fantasy football league.
48. Fantasy Baseball Draft 2010: Get ready for the new season with this “cheat sheet” for fantasy baseball.
49. Tipping Pitches: Get commentary and opinion, as well as tips, related to the world of fantasy sports.
50. Razzball BB: Access a plethora of helpful tips related to fantasy baseball.

As a society, we love watching professional athletes. They are interesting, and they lead lives that are so different from our own. As a result, it is little surprise that we are interested in following their moves — and even reading about their thoughts. Technology and the Internet have made it possible for professional athletes to interact with fans via blogs and through social media, like Twitter. Indeed, some sports agents encourage blogging and social media use by professional athletes as a way to further promote the “brand.” Here are 50 of the top official blogs by professional athletes:

NBA

NBA basketball is popular and fast-paced. And there are some basketballers that let you into their own fast-paced lives.

1. Kevin Durant: A popular player for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Durant posts is thoughts, and even offers video and other interesting tidbits.
2. Chris Bosh: Toronto Raptors player Chris Bosh regular updates his video blogs on YouTube with interesting thoughts and often amusing antics.
3. Dwyane Wade: Popular Miami Heat player Dwyane Wade keeps his fans updated somewhat regular with news and thoughts.
4. Dwight Howard: Another young player, this time playing for the Orlando Magic, knows the value of keeping his fans happy with insights and information.
5. Carmelo Anthony: This Denver Nuggets star has been popular since his days at Syracuse University. Learn more about him, and what’s happening.
6. Josh Howard: Read the latest news from Josh Howard, a player for the Washington Wizards. One fun feature: A look at his cars.
7. Mark Cuban: So he isn’t an NBA player. But this Mavericks owner is one of the most colorful and interesting people involved with pro sports.

WNBA

There are a number of talented ballplayers in the WNBA, and some of them have blogs, so that you can follow their careers.

8. Chamique Holdsclaw: Musings and insights into the world of WNBA from this Atlanta Dream forward.
9. Renee Montgomery: Fun thoughts from this spunky and stylish player for the Connecticut Sun.
10. Cappie Pondexter: Get interesting insights on playing ball and on life from this guard playing for the Phoenix Mercury.
11. Swin Cash: Watch video blogs and get Twitter updates from this Seattle Storm player.
12. Lisa Leslie: Writes periodic blog posts. Interesting look into the thoughts of this L.A. Sparks basketball star.

MLB

Baseball season lasts a looong time, from spring training to the World Series, there is a lot of ground to cover. Do it with these baseball starts.

13. Joe Nathan: This Minnesota Twins pitcher offers news and information on his official blog.
14. 38 Pitches: Popular Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling blogs about baseball and about life.
15. Nick Swisher: Get news from New York Yankees player Nick Swisher, watch YouTube videos and email him through “Ask Nick.”
16. Matt Antonelli: This gregarious player for the San Diego Padres keeps a fairly up to date blog. It’s picking up even more now with Spring Training.
17. Colin Balester: This pitcher for the Washington Nationals blogs about baseball, life and more.

NFL

Hard hitting on the field, and hard hitting in the blogosphere, these football players offer insight into their lives.

18. Drew Brees: Popular New Orleans Saints quarterback has a blog with video, his insights, and more.
19. Nick Barnett: Barnett has a multimedia site, with blog posts, videos, and a great forum. He plays for the Green Bay Packers.
20. Kerry Rhodes: This young player for the New York Jets posts on his blog, and includes links to his Facebook and his Twitter.
21. Larry Fitzgerald: This player for the Arizona Cardinals offers a number of blog posts, pictures and videos for his fans.
22. Chad Ochocinco: This Cincinnati Bengals player is renowned for speaking his mind and saying outrageous things. He uses his Facebook account like a blog, posting regular insights.
23. Darius Butler: New England Patriots player offers thoughts on football — even in the off season.
24. Jamal Anderson: This retired running back offers insight into what’s going on with football now, and other sports.

NHL

If hockey’s your think, you can follow the inner minds of these players as they share them online.

25. Mike Green: Plays for the Washington Capitals and offers news and personal insights.
26. Kevin Weekes: This New Jersey Devils player doesn’t write all of his blog posts, but he writes some of them. Other related news items are written by someone else.
27. Ted Leonsis: He’s not a player, but he is the owner of the Washington Capitals, and has a lot to say about hockey.

Soccer

Soccer (football elsewhere in the world) is gaining popularity in the U.S. Here are the blogs of some professional soccer players.

28. Brian Ching: This Houston Dynamo player offers insights into playing soccer and what he’s doing in life.
29. Charlie Davies: Specializes in video blogging, and has his own YouTube channel.
30. Léo Moura: This Brazilian footballer plays for Brazil’s Flamengo. He has a great blog — but you have to know Portuguese if you want to read it.
31. Danny Dichio: This Toronto FC player analyzes soccer and more on his blog.
32. Landon Donovan: This blog updates news about the L.A. Galaxy player, and you can get Donovan’s own thoughts by reading his Facebook feed on the front page.
33. Stuart Holden: Keep up with this Houston Dynamo player’s life, and read his thoughts on the Twitter stream next to the news updates. He also has a blog that he uses to occasionally write longer posts.
34. Freddie Ljungberg: The Seattle Sounders footballer speaks his mind about soccer — and anything else that he happens to be thinking about.
35. Alecko Eskandarian: Another L.A. Galaxy  player, he keeps his blog on Facebook.

Golf

Golf has been in the news a lot, thanks to Tiger Woods. But he’s not the only golfer out there.

36. Paul Casey: This rising golf star blogs about his golf game and more.
37. Rory McIlroy: The European tour golfer keeps you up to date on what’s going on in European golf, and his insights.
38. Stuart Appleby: Find his schedule, and read his advice on golfing.
39. Natalie Gulbis: This LPGA golfer shares her thoughts on golf, fashion and more.
40. Janell Howland: Keeps you up to date on what’s going on in her life and with her golf game.
41. Nicole Hage: Another LPGA golfer, Hage use here Facebook as a blog.

Tennis

Get updates from tennis stars through their blogs.

42. Andy Murray: This tennis player blogs about his training, his games, and more.
43. Kim Clijsters: Read the latest posts from Clijsters, and get news updates and watch video.
44. Anne Keothavong: Follow training, and get her thoughts on tennis, and what’s next.
45. Serena Williams: Posts fairly regularly about tennis, and about her clothing line and fashion in general.
46. Venus Williams: Big sister also has her own blog, and she posts about her travels and her tennis.

Other Sports

Here are some blogs from professionals in other sports.

47. Shaun White: This professional snowboarder is always interesting. Read his thoughts in the Facebook widget by the news updates.
48. Amanda Beard: This professional swimmer and Olympic athlete provides insights and tips.
49. Brian Boitano: Professional figure skater offers insight into the Olympics, as well as videos, recipes and more.
50. Jennie Finch: Professional softball player shares her thoughts on life and ball.

If you seek professional athletes to follow on Twitter, you can find many 2010 Olympians and NBA (National Basketball Association) stars. But, if you want to find baseball players, tennis athletes and golfers, the number of professionals with more than 20,000 followers are few and far between. The top 50 pro athletes listed below were based upon their Twitter popularity, but we limited the number of the most popular sports to ten, and combined baseball and tennis for a total of five Twitter users in those two sports.

This list is categorized, and each pro athlete’s Twitter name is listed alphabetically within each category. When you click on each link, you can go to that athlete’s Twitter page where you can follow his or her Tweets. There are no agents or sports clubs listed…the list below contains athletes only.

Vancouver 2010

These are the top ten athlete Twitter accounts from the 2010 Winter Olympics:

1. AngelaRuggiero: Follow this woman, a four-time ice hockey Olympic medalist, World Champion, leader of the US Women’s National Team and Harvard Graduate.
2. ApoloOhno: Record-winning eight-time Olympic medalist in speed skating, Ohno also is known for his stint on Dancing with the Starts.
3. celskeet: JR Celski won the bronze on the short track in speed skating, after spending the 2008-2009 season on the Senior Circuit winning medals and traveling through North America, Asia and Europe.
4. EvanLysacek: 2010 Olympic Champion and 2009 World Champion in men’s figure skating and contestant on the 10th season of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars.
5. JohnnyGWeir: Weir is from Russia…he’s not only an accomplished figure skater, he’s a world-class fashionista — all at the age of 23.
6. lindseyvonn: This skier finally made the Gold this year, but not without struggles.
7. louievito: Vito became prominent on the professional snowboarding scene at age 17 by completing a backside 1080 at the Australia Open — making him the first rider to successfully pull off the complex move. He came in fifth this year in the half-pipe at the Olympics.
8. Shaun_White: This snowboarder wowed the crowd with his gravity-defying Double McTwist 1260 — but only after he had already won the Gold for the half-pipe.
9. SteveMesler: 3x Olympic bobsledder, fisherman, lover of politics, travel and discovery…and his newly crowned 2010 Olympic Championship.
10. Yunaaaa: An incredible skaer, Kim Yu-Na won the championship in ladies singles, the 2009 World Championship and the 2009 Four-Continents Championship. As of February 2010, Kim is ranked first in the world by the International Skating Union (ISU).

NBA

The top-ten followed NBA stars, no less than 320,000 followers and up to 2,850,326 followers for Shaq.

11. cisco32: Francisco Garcia is a 6′7″, 195-pound guard–forward from the University of Louisville, and who currently plays for the Sacramento Kings of the NBA.
12. derekfisher: Shaq and Kobe may be the Lakers’ stars, but Fish’s influence and leadership on the floor and in the locker room were evident for anyone who came in contact with the team.
13. DwightHoward: Dwight has led the Magic to one of their best starts to a season in the 20-year history of the franchise, rolling 33 wins in the first 41 games.
14. jasonterry31: This Dallas Mavericks shooting guard/point guard goes by “JET,” a nickname derived from his initials.
15. kaj33: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is NBA’s all-time leading scorer, still on top of the game.
16. mister6clutch: Mario Chalmers had played in every Miami Heat game up to the missing January 31st game against Milwaukee Bucks. It was the first game he had missed in his two year career. He has a torn ligament in his thumb and will be out indefinitely.
17. paulpierce34: The one and only Paul Pierce of the Boston Celtics, out to pierce the truth…
18. QRich: From DePaul University in Chicago directly to the NBA Draft in 2000, Quentin Richardson currently is on the roster of the Miami Heat.
19. RealLamarOdom: Meet and follow Lamar Odom, currently the 6′10″ forward/guard/center for the Los Angeles Lakers.
20. THE_REAL_SHAQ: The real Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal), out and about, performing acts of Shaqness.

Football

While Michael Strahan and Warren Sapp rank high in Twitter for American football players, they’re currently out of the game. The following players are active, at least until they say they aren’t…

21. OGOchoCinco: Chad Javon Ochocinco is an American football wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Bengals in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft.
22. kerryrhodes: Kerry Rhodes currently plays safety for the New York Jets in the National Football League. He played college football at University of Louisville. He also runs the Kerry Rhodes Foundation, providing youth with scholarships.
23. Lfitzgerald11: Larry Darnell Fitzgerald, Jr. is an American football wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League.
24. kirkmorrison52: Middle linebacker for The Oakland Raiders, Morrison was drafted by the Raiders in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft.
25. Mark_Sanchez: This New York Jets quarterback was selected 5th overall in the 2009 NFL draft.
26. NickBarnett: Follow this linebacker for the Green Bay Packers.
27. reggie_bush: Reginald Alfred “Reggie” Bush II is a football player for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. He has played running back/tailback, wide receiver, and punt returner.
28. ShaunPhillips95: Shaun Phillips is an American football outside linebacker for the San Diego Chargers.
29. TakeoSpikes51: Takeo Spikes wants to bring the Lombardi Trophy back to San Francisco and the 49ers.
30. terrellowens: Wide receiver #81 Terrell Owens is a six-time Pro Bowl selection, and former holder of the league single-game reception record. Owens has been one of the dominant receivers of his era and is currently a free agent.

Football/Soccer

No matter what you call this sport, it has its stars and followers…

31. CharlieDavies9: Charles Desmond “Charlie” Davies is an American soccer player who plays as a striker for French Ligue 1 side Sochaux.
32. DiegoTardelli09: Diego Tardelli Martins is a Brazilian striker. He currently plays for Atletico Mineiro.
33. FreddyAdu11: This American soccer player currently plays for Aris Thessaloniki in the Greek Super League, on loan from Benfica.
34. JozyAltidore17: Josmer Volmy “Jozy” Altidore is another American soccer player currently playing for Hull City of the English Premier League, on loan from Villarreal of the Spanish Primera Division, and for the United States national team.
35. julianobelletti: Awarded the Silver Ball by Placar for his consistently great performances, Juliano Haus Belletti is a Brazilian footballer who currently plays for Chelsea as a right back, although he can also play as a midfielder.
36. leomoura2: Leonardo da Silva Moura is a Brazilian right wingback who currently plays for Brazil’s Flamengo.
37. luis_fabuloso: Luis Fabiano Clemente, known as Luis Fabiano, is a Brazilian football player who currently plays for Sevilla FC as a striker.
38. MauriceEdu: Maurice “Mo” Edu is an American association footballer who currently plays for Scottish Premier League side Rangers and the United States national team.
39. Petkovic10: This 37-year-old Serbian played a pivotal role for Brazil’s Flamengo, scoring 8 goals (including 2 Olympic goals) and leading the Rubro-Negro challenge to eventually win its sixth Brazilian Championship title.
40. RealKaka: Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite, known as Kaka, is a Brazilian football midfielder who currently plays for Real Madrid C.F. and the Brazilian national team.

Golf

These golfers all have more than 20,000 followers, and at least one has almost as many followers as Shaq.

41. Ianjamespoulter: Ian Poulter is a global tour golfer. He’s a Massive Arsenal fan and also loves Orlando’s Magic.
42. Paul_Casey: England’s Paul Casey burst onto the professional scene in 2000 following an extremely successful amateur career that culminated in a record individual performance at the 1999 Walker Cup in Nairn, Scotland.
43. PGA_JohnDaly: John Daly is a top PGA professional golfer from Arkansas.
44. Rorsmcilroy: Rory McIlroy is a European Tour golfer, a big Man United and Ulster Rugby fan and loves cars.
45. stewartcink: Stewart Cink, out of Georgia (or South Carolina), is an all-Nike clubs player and a method putter. He has almost as many follwers as Shaq.

Baseball and Tennis

It is sad when baseball commentators have more Twitter followers than the actual players. Here are three pro baseball players who have more than 20,000 followers. The lack of baseball pros on Twitter leaves room for the two top tennis stars…

46. andy_murray: Andrew “Andy” Murray is a Scottish professional tennis player and current British number one.
47. andyroddick: Andrew Stephen “Andy” Roddick is the top-ranked American tennis player and the only male American inside the top 10.
48. CC_Sabathia: This is the official Twitter of Carsten Charles “CC” Sabathia, an American Major League Baseball starting pitcher for the New York Yankees.
49. JoseCanseco: Jose Canseco Capas, Jr. is a former outfielder and designated hitter in Major League Baseball and the identical twin brother of former major league player Ozzie Canseco. After retiring from baseball he has competed in boxing and mixed martial arts.
50. NickSwisher: On November 13, 2008, Nick was traded to the New York Yankees, where he is a world champion and the toast of New York.

Web applications can be understood from the phenomenal development of computer solutions using programming language to deliver out certain results in diverse areas and fields. Web applications are generally made to ease out a complex situation and most of the times are connected with a database. Sports are one such area where web applications are extensively used. Below are given some web applications related to the field of Athletics.

1. Training Peaks: It is a Peakware’s premier software that deals into TrainingPeaks in highly recognized tool for monitoring, analyzing and planning human performance. It is used by many individuals, professionals and businesses to take help from the software as to achieve their goals in health, fitness and athletic performance.
2. Active Recruiting: This started as in 2002 as an effort to let sport person to have a visibility on NFL kicker and it worked successfully. Now Active recruiting helps athletes to have maximum edge and reach to recruiters for a frame- by-frame review of a nationwide pool of athletic talent.  Overall this tool lets an athlete to maximize its exposure to college recruiters with key stats, highlights & videos to hundred of top college and universities.
3. Peak Sports: This website is provided with proven sports psychology strategies to boost mental toughness and improvement on performance. It provides in forms of sports tools, articles and games psychology tips for athlete, coach or sports parents. More one can have mental toughness articles, podcasts and sports psychology e-books over here.
4. Triathlontraining4life.com: Here one can have Triathlon training under proven scientific triathlon training system that is guarantee for increased speed, endurance, strength and power. This particular system is designed in such a manner to benefit triathletes at every level. Training programs are prepared by dedicated sports professionals.
5. Athlete 360.com: This site is very important for race enthusiasts as it is provided with a good number of article, features and other utilities for the benefit of Athletes. It also keeps on organizing beneficial events as well as practice sessions for Athletes.
6. iPump Free Workout: Collection of over four thousand images and videos, this application is a very serious device for athlete. Here, he can get tips for props, recommendations and the ability do a drag and drop workouts. And it has nearly 400 already programmed workouts and most of them are free.
7. Lose It: It is a helpful intuitive, and complete nutritional database and statistic tracker where vitals such as current weight, gender, and goals can be put into in order to calculate daily calorie budget for an athlete to lose his weight.

Ever wanted to be a sports agent and represent some of the biggest names in the sports world? Ever wanted to have one of the world-class team managers’ jobs as coach to the world’s top sports teams? Did you ever want to be a renowned fitness instructor, or trainer? Then pursuing a degree in Sports Management is the best gateway to these careers and more. It is also very convenient if taken online as you can tailor your classes and courses according to your schedule so you do not have to attend school exclusively, you can also work or do other duties in your life with flexibility. Below are some of the best universities that offer Online Sports Management courses and accreditation:

1. University of Phoenix
Founded in 1976 and with over 200 campuses worldwide, it is easy to see why an online degree from the largest private university in USA and Canada is a viable option for your Associate Degree in Sports Management. The courses are comprehensive and the tutorials are up to date.

2. Ashford University
Founded in 1918, this institution will offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Sports and Recreation Management online for an affordable cost and provide you with the best course material to get you passing with flying colors.

3. California University of Pennsylvania
This university offers a Bachelor of Science in Sport Management and a Master of Science in Sports Management studies. The bachelor’s course offers fitness and wellness courses, sports management, communications and marketing. The Master’s degree is the next step and takes about 13 months to complete.

4. West Virginia University
They offer minors in Athletic training, personal training, and a Bachelor of Science in Sports Management. In this case, they might also require you to take communications, business studies, and various other sciences before you consideration to take on this degree. You do not have to have necessarily taken them at the said university but if you qualify then you are good to go. Their website has a wealth of information on courses available.

5. Drexel University
Recognized worldwide, their Masters in Sports Management course is a great option if you wish to study sports management online. There is a requirement to finish a thesis and project and one-week on-campus session in Philadelphia.

These are some of the campuses across America that could have what you want out of your Sports Management career aspirations. This is a much cheaper, less of a hassle, flexible and interesting way to take your university or college course and you can finish them in your own time, according to the regulations in the institution of choice.