The intervention of digital technology and academic evaluation systems has profoundly transformed the order of academic communication, thus significantly impacting the image dissemination of sports academic journals. Existing research on the image of academic journals predominantly focuses on aspects such as perceived value, brand management, and cover design. Some studies offer a broad analysis of the overall image construction of social science and scientific, technical, and medical (STM) journals, while others emphasize singular dimensions such as visual identifiers. There remains a gap in systematic theoretical perspective combined with empirical case studies examining the holistic image construction of academic journals. Furthermore, few research addresses the challenges of journal image communication within the evolving scholarly dissemination ecosystem. As a subset of academic journals, sports academic journals are particularly affected by these shifts in the communication order and the associated difficulties in image management. The marginal status of sports studies within the academic landscape often leads to a diminished scholarly perception, while the public nature of sports topics—which are accessible and engaging to a general audience—creates a distinctive public communication environment. These factors contribute to a pronounced image crisis in the digital era, where user empowerment through technology further complicates the communication dynamics. To address these issues, this paper employs Corporate Identity System (CIS) theory to develop a theoretical framework for image communication in sports academic journals, structured around three dimensions: conceptual identity, behavioral identity, and visual identity. Through analysis of 16 sports journals listed in the Directory of Chinese Core Journals (2023 edition), this paper analyzes how changes in academic communication order influence their image dissemination and explores potential strategies for reconstruction. The aim is to enhance the overall image and academic influence of sports journals, thereby addressing issues including content homogenization and disciplinary development delays. This research reveals that the shift toward article-based dissemination by major databases, the prevalence of superficial and fragmented reading on social media, and the increasing influence of journal evaluations in shaping academic communication have collectively obscured the holistic image and symbolic systems of sports academic journals. These shifts deepen the integration of evaluative and communicative functions of journals, thereby resulting in image dissemination characterized by the dilution of academic concepts, weakened agenda-setting capacity, and fading visual identity. To counteract these challenges, sports academic journals must strengthen their role awareness and enhance conceptual communication first by clarifying their positioning and development vision, improving the textual expression of their mission statements, and fostering differentiated academic content production based on the distinct identity and independence of sports scholarship. Second, these journals should optimize their agenda-setting mechanisms to guide communicative behaviors. This includes innovating the function of academic agenda-setting, expanding the impact of organizational practices, and leveraging the editorial agency to reinforce behavioral identity. Finally, implementing strategic approach to academic operations is essential for establishing distinctive identity markers, including improved conceptual identity element design and the development of conceptual identity elements, as well as cultivating and promoting the editors' professional image as journal representatives.