Five Netflix sports romances to watch after ‘Crew Girl’
Coming-of-age drama is basically Netflix’s bread and butter by now, so much so that the streamer could probably make one in its sleep. But lately, Netflix has been spicing things up by throwing sports into the mix, and hence, it’s safe to say that crushes these days come with a competitive edge. Enter Crew Girl!
The story follows Teagan Tao, a teenager whose life changes after a family scandal sends her to Easton Prep. Looking for a fresh start, she joins the school’s all-boys rowing crew as coxswain. Enter Josh and Cam, and, well, there goes any chance of keeping things straightforward!
But when has romance and rivalry been a great idea? A race can be lost and forgotten, but watching somebody else walk away with the person you wanted… Now that’s going to leave a mark.
So, if Crew Girl leaves you craving another romance, these five Netflix shows know exactly how to keep that tension alive!
Five Netflix sports romances to watch after Crew Girl
Finding Her Edge (2026-)
Coming soon to Netflix with its second season, Finding Her Edge shows that ice dancing is risky enough when your only concern is staying upright and then goes on to throw romance onto the rink. There is something about figure skaters and romance that always pairs well. This time, we have Adriana Russo returning to competition after her mother’s death, hoping to help save her family’s struggling rink. Her new partner is the very confident Brayden Elliot, which would be plenty to handle on its own. But then Freddie O’Connell, her former skating partner and first love, returns, and hot damn, we have competition now.
And yep, you can see why Crew Girl fans might eat this up. Adriana has a sporting career she desperately needs to work out, while her feelings keep getting in the bloody way. Every lift depends on trust, too, so there is nowhere to hide when things get sensitive. The series adapts Jennifer Iacopelli’s YA novel, inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion. If Josh and Cam have you picking sides, just wait until Brayden and Freddie get involved!
Like Flowers in Sand (2023-2024)
You might need a break after that love-triangle faff, so we have Like Flowers in Sand chiming in as a breath of fresh air. This show takes you to a Korean town where ssireum wrestling is a serious business. Kim Baek-du used to be the local prodigy, but his career has hit a wall, and he almost embraced retirement until Oh Du-sik, his childhood friend, comes back and joins his struggling team as a manager. And just like that, Baek-du has a reason to get back in the sand.
The romance here is not as passionate as Crew Girl, but we aren’t looking for an exact replica either. Baek-du and Du-sik have years of history between them, and those old feelings do not stay buried forever. Meanwhile, the team is fighting to survive, and Baek-du is trying to find the athlete he used to be. Netflix tags it as a first-love sports romance, and don’t just think that it’s a mushy romance, as it’s a flavourful mystery running through Geosan too.
Olympo (2025)
Olympo is what you want to put when you don’t want to waste time waiting for the heat because it switches it on right away. At the Pirineos High Performance Center, young athletes are pushed hard, and artistic-swimming captain Amaia has zero patience for second place. Then teammate Núria starts improving at an exponential rate, which doesn’t make sense. When she collapses, Amaia starts an investigation, and soon a sponsor called Olympo is tied to a doping scandal nobody wants dragged into the light.
And the romance? Oh, it is very messy here. Netflix even labels the series “steamy”, and that fits. Amaia’s relationship with rugby player Cristian starts to crack, while newcomer Zoe brings another complication into the mix. Roque, meanwhile, runs into prejudice in professional sport. Under all the hookups and competition, you might find yourself wondering: how far are these athletes willing to go?
Spinning Out (2020)
Spinning Out starts with a nasty fall, and nope, not the rom-com sort. Kat Baker is an elite singles skater whose career is knocked off course after a serious accident, until pairs skating gives her another shot. The catch? Her new partner is Justin Davis, a talented bad boy with excessive baggage. Obviously, they clash at first but eventually start trusting each other, and before long, attraction is involved. Of course things get messed up. At this point it’s a no-brainer.
But Crew Girl fans will know the headache here. Sport keeps Kat and Justin close, and feelings make that partnership harder to control. Kat is also dealing with the fear left by her fall while trying to keep her Olympic hopes alive. Across ten episodes, the duo train together, but the relationship… It gets harder by the second to separate from the rink. Bit of a pickle, really, when the person holding you up is also the one you are falling for.
The Hockey Girls – Les de l’hoquei (2019-2020)
If Teagan having to prove herself in Crew Girl got you invested, The Hockey Girls bring that fight to a whole squad! Club Patí Minerva is already in trouble when the coach leaves for a rival and the money starts running thin. Then the women’s team ends up on the chopping block. Exactly what they needed. Former player Anna Ricou returns injured and has to get involved in the battle because apparently this team was not dealing with enough already.
And hockey is only part of the headache. The girls still have school to deal with, while they also have to make time for romance. A good thing here is that queer relationships get proper breathing space, without pushing the sport aside. So if Crew Girl had you backing Teagan, Minerva gives you an entire team worth shouting for, and these girls are not going down without a fight, so buckle up.