5 Of The Best Sports Romance Books For Your Next Read

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Romance book fans, rejoice. If you've been searching for a new subgenre that'll have you achieving all of your ambitious reading goals and raving about love, sports romance should be on your radar. Although sports romance has always been a fan favorite, HBO Max's series adaptation of Rachel Reid's "Heated Rivalry" has completely reignited interest in the subgenre, thanks to its slow-burn romance and irresistible rivals-to-lovers dynamic. The 2025 series starring Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie has quickly become a sensation, and not only has Reid's 2019 novel climbed back onto top-selling charts, but it also sparked serious reader interest for more emotionally driven sports romances. 

Readers were drawn in by the show's heated romance, and are now seeking out similar stories that offer the same emotional intensity and high-stakes chemistry. Well, let us tell you, we're just as obsessed, and instantly recognized the need to research and prepare a list full of steamy sports romance titles to bring our readers to the same emotional highs they felt watching Ilya and Shane's romance unfold. 

From another deeply emotional MM (Male/Male) romance that unfolds between two hockey players to an independent American woman's unexpected love story with a New Zealand rugby player, there are so many sports romance books that have yet to be discovered by you. These titles will surely prove just how diverse and addictive the sports romance genre can be.

"Just This Once" by Rosalind James is perfect for those who love a swoon-worthy sports romance paired with a strong dose of travel escapism. The first of the Escape to New Zealand series, the story follows Hannah, who heads to New Zealand for a much-needed vacation and ends up forming a connection with a rugby player that challenges her fiercely independent sense of self. 

Reviewers praise the novel's vivid setting, noting that the author's immersive descriptions make it feel like they were traveling right alongside the main character. One Amazon reviewer gave the book five stars and said, "This book hits all my 'sweet spots' — a heroine who seems to have it all together but is a little bit vulnerable inside, a strong hero who is a really good guy, a relatively angst free storyline with good dialogue and humor, some hot and steamy scenes and.....well, New Zealand. It's impossible to read this series without plotting how you will travel there someday." 

Readers appreciate how realistically Hannah and Drew's relationship unfolds, praising the emotional pacing and the way James thoughtfully develops Hannah's growth throughout the story. A five-star Amazon reviewer titled their review, "DOWN TO EARTH ROMANCE," and said, "I really got into it mainly because the dialogue is very realistic and the characters are all likable." Altogether, this is an ideal pick for readers who enjoy a more realistic, feel-good sports romance with an escapist setting as a bonus.

If you've been craving another MM sports romance story with the same slow-burning tension as "Heated Rivalry", "Him" by Sabrina Bowen and Elle Kennedy deserves your undivided attention. The first of a two-book series, Bowen and Kennedy's co-authored book received the RITA Award by Romance Writers of America in 2016. The story follows two estranged best friends whose paths collide again at the height of their hockey careers as they play on opposing teams. A long-buried attraction, unresolved tension, and fierce competition quickly rise to the surface, blurring the line between desire and rivalry as their chemistry becomes impossible to ignore. 

A Goodreads reviewer gave the book four stars and wrote, "This filled the ['Heated Rivalry'] void in my heart." While some readers felt the comparison set especially high expectations, "Him" still holds a 4.5-star average rating with more than 16,000 Amazon reviews, and well over half of readers awarding it a full five stars.

While it may not replicate every beat of "Heated Rivalry," "Him" offers its very own compelling mix of emotional vulnerability, undeniable chemistry, and high-stakes hockey tension that makes it hard to put down. If you haven't been able to get hockey and MM romance out of your mind, then add Bowen and Kennedy's book to your TBR. 

Hockey romance has long been a fan-favorite corner of the sports genre, and if you're looking to get into it as well, Elle Kennedy's "The Deal" is one of our essential hockey romance books to check out to introduce you to the niche genre. Kennedy, who co-wrote "Him," is known for her chemistry-packed sports romances, and she particularly loves writing about hockey players. "The Deal" is the first book in the five-book "Off-Campus" series, and is another book by Kennedy that's absolutely worth your attention. It was such a hit that it's another hockey romance being turned into a TV series.

What happens when an ambitious, hard-working student has to tutor the star player of her school's hockey team? Hannah's about to find out, as she has to tutor Garrett so he can remain academically eligible. While their arrangement begins as something strictly practical, Hannah finds herself drawn into Garrett's world. A Goodreads reviewer who gave Kennedy's book 4.5 stars noted, "I fear there was some sort of drug in this book because I simply was incapable of putting [it] down. My first hockey romance and safe to say... I get it. I'm addicted."

Again, Rachel Reid's "Heated Rivalry" has understandably set a high bar for hockey romance fans, but many readers found "The Deal" to be another entertaining, chemistry-driven read. Another Goodreads reviewer gave the book four stars and said the book was good enough to fill the void after "Heated Rivalry."

Switching gears from the ice rink to the gridiron, "The Jock" by Tal Bauer is the perfect sports romance if you're a football fan. This book delivers a football-centered steamy MM romance packed with competitive energy, emotional depth, and so much chemistry. As niche as sports romances are, this is one of the books that has yet to make it on to many people's radars, but once people read Bauer's story, they're obsessed. 

More than 70% of 5,000+ Amazon reviewers have given the book a 5-star approval rating. A reviewer shared they read the book three times and said they were amazed at how they continued to be left 'in awe of the intensity and emotions of this story.' They described the book as "A perfect love story, but also a giant sports success story that is both vicious and inspiring in turn." 

Many readers praised Bauer's beautiful storytelling and emotionally rich prose. Bauer tells the story of two people who possibly have nothing in common. But when the two of them are pushed out of their comfort zones, the most unexpected connection forms, and they begin to realize they actually might have more in common than they imagined. If you feel like you've exhausted your hockey romance favorites, "The Jock" is the perfect football-centered alternative. Plus, if you have a Kindle Unlimited subscription, it's free! 

This is another book about football, just not the American kind. A fan-favorite author known for her seriously steamy romance books, Ana Huang, dives into the world of high-stakes professional soccer in "The Striker." When a former prima ballerina crosses paths with an intense star striker, sparks fly. But their attraction to one another is anything but simple. Clashing personalities, power struggles, and deeply buried insecurities turn their connection into a tense, slow-burning romance. 

Huang's book is the first of a three-book series. Some readers humorously said it's a spicier version of the beloved hit Apple TV series, "Ted Lasso." Many readers enjoyed the banter between the two main characters and felt Huang did an excellent job unraveling each character's layers one by one. A five-star Amazon reviewer said, "Every story she tells is a treat but this one is especially deep, wise and inspiring. The writing is magnificent, the character development is phenomenal and every page is a delight. While this is her first sports romance, she has proven she can ace any genre or trope." 

"The Striker" is an ideal pick for soccer fans and readers who enjoy an exciting and emotionally charged romance with some spicy tension. The only thing you may want to be wary of is that the book is nearly 600 pages, so you'll seriously have to prepare yourself when starting this one.

Let us preface this by saying this was perhaps one of the most exciting lists to put together. Many of us here at Women loved the HBO Max series adaptation of Rachel Reid's "Heated Rivalry." Our writer binged the series in one weekend and loved it so much that she just started Reid's original book series. We noticed an uptick in readers actively seeking out more sports romance books that might be able to deliver the same emotional high and slow-burn tension that Reid's series provides. 

As always, we didn't want to simply skim bestselling lists and introduce books that can easily be discovered by our readers with little effort. We did what we do best and dove deep into the sports romance genre to uncover some serious standouts and hidden gems worth adding to your TBR. While you might see Elle Kennedy and Ana Huang on this list, you'll also see authors you may not have heard of but definitely deserve your attention when it comes to the sports romance genre. 

Once we had a decent shortlist of titles we wanted to introduce our readers to, we brought the list down to just five by vetting reviews, ratings, and overall reception of each pick to ensure our titles had emotional payoff and lasting impact. If you can't seem to get "Heated Rivalry" off your mind, these books could definitely help scratch that itch a bit.