Sports Illustrated Magazine Archive (1954-2000) This link opens in a new windowpresents an extensive collection of the popular sports magazine dating from its very first issue in August, 1954 through December, 2000, presented in a comprehensive cover-to-cover format. The magazine has aimed to chronicle the weekly events in the world of sports. Each issue originally focused on more upper-class sporting activities such as polo and boating, but in the 1960s the magazine expanded its focus to include the increasingly popular professional sports of baseball, football, and, eventually, basketball.