Objective: The portrayal of athletes in the media is an important part of sports fans’ image of a country or team, which is why this study’s objective is to identify the rhetorical and visual techniques used by English-language sports channels to create the image of Russian athletes. Methods: The research methodology includes a qualitative content analysis of American and British sports broadcasts on NBC and SKY Sports. The authors conduct a frequency analysis of the terms and codes used by anchors that affect the viewer’s perception of athletes. Results: The results show the predominance of negative rhetoric and the creation of images of the “enemy” and “other” in NBC and SKY Sports programs, as well as the direct association of athletes with the country they represent. The personal characteristics of athletes are lost in favor of a collective identity. Non-verbal techniques of anchors and experts, such as gestures, facial expressions, and intonation, emphasize an aggressive tone and unfriendly attitude. Conclusions: The conclusions highlight the importance of visual and rhetorical devices in forming media images of athletes and stipulate the need for further research to fully understand their impact on spectators. © 2024, Centro Universitario Curitiba - UNICURITIBA. All rights reserved.