The publishing industry has issued a serious warning over the growing spread of AI-generated books that impersonate the autobiographies of star athletes, marketed on Amazon as e-books or printed editions. Dan Conway, Chief Executive of the UK Publishers Association, stressed that “AI-made books have become an increasing problem,” noting that for readers it is often difficult to distinguish between an authentic, well-documented book and one “generated at speed.”
Investigations by Sky News revealed that some of these books, for instance, have capitalized on the sudden success of England’s women’s team in the European Championship by releasing titles about players such as Chloe Kelly and Michelle Agyemang almost immediately after their victories. The covers often looked alike, and in some cases even featured American football imagery instead of soccer. These editions, typically fewer than fifty pages long, were priced at around £11.
The issue has also raised concern among athletes themselves. Former England player Steph Houghton said the phenomenon undermines her genuine effort in writing her own autobiography, while Neil Ruddock expressed bewilderment upon seeing a “fake” version of his battle with addiction. Meanwhile, player Khalida Popal described the use of her powerful story of resisting the Taliban as “frightening,” stressing that such accounts represent the voices of real victims.
