What is a NIL deal?: Name, Image, and Likeness

What is a NIL deal? Name, Image, Likeness

Some college athletes are making millions of dollars per year thanks to the new Name, Image, and Likeness law. That’s more than some semi-professionals and even professional athletes. Did you hear about D’Eriq King the quarterback that signed a $20,000 dollar deal with College Hunks Hauling Junk & Moving and Murphy Auto Group? How about Hercy Miller, an incoming Tennessee State University basketball player, that signed a $2 million endorsement with tech company Web Apps America? The new Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rule made all of this possible. Now, you may be asking “what is a NIL deal?.”

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My name is Ambra and I am a licensed FIFA intermediary or soccer sports agent for Dub Sports & Entertainment. In this article I am going to explain “What is the NIL? Name Image, and Likeness.” “Who it Impacts?” and some quick advice”.

What is a NIL deal and who does it impact?

In previous years, the governing body for all intercollegiate athletics, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), enacted and enforced rules that barred players from earning income and gifts utilizing the player’s own name, image, and likeness to advertise, recommend or promote directly the sale or use of a commercial product or service of any kind. The NCAA has barred players that have signed with an agent from participating in any collegiate sport, except for a very few rare exceptions. The reason for this was that the NCAA felt that amateur athletes should remain free of the influences of money. By signing their scholarship agreement, athletes forfeited the rights to sell their NIL. If an athlete would break the rules, they would lose their eligibility; which meant they would not be able to continue playing for his school. With the new regulations, this will no longer be the case.

Name, Image, Likeness

For the first time, college athletes can benefit from name, image, and likeness opportunities without affecting their college eligibility. Examples include appearing in advertisements, earning money from autographs, giving social media shoutouts, teaching lessons, starting businesses, and selling memorabilia. Other examples are a soccer player that can now receive a free meal in exchange for an Instagram post about a local lunch cafe, or a volleyball player that can accept make-up products in exchange for sharing a post about the brand. Athletes can utilize their NIL rights in various ways, but they must inform their school about any NIL arrangements. Additionally, they can hire agents for NIL deals.

Quick Advice/Warnings

Even though college athletes get plenty of opportunities to ink lucrative deals, the new guidelines can also quickly become conflicting, complex, and confusing when it comes to the types of deals athletes can strike.

1) Remember that you are asking to represent someone’s brand, so make sure that you are representable.

If you want to link yourself to a brand, use your social media to market those brands. Often, this work consists of making videos of yourself for such brands. If you are comfortable in front of a camera, that can be a great advantage. If you are more reserved, it can be challenging, but it’s something you can practice. Make sure to write a script for yourself, practice it, and when you feel comfortable enough, you can start recording. It’s easy money! Besides that, you will learn a lot by working with brands. On the other hand, you might prefer to create something for yourself instead of linking or associating yourself with another brand. An example of using your NIL is to start an apparel line for your own.

Most college athletes have always been ‘just that’, college athletes. They haven’t had a job before. They never really filled out a resume, never had a job interview. Their job was to be an athlete. Now, these same athletes are in a position in which they are dealing with huge companies. They are hiring marketing managers to represent themselves, but have no business experience. This means that they may not be fully prepared for the new NIL guidelines. There is a lack of education. They have to understand that with money comes responsibility. Now, they also have to think about taxes. They need to get financially aware, thinking about savings, and if there is a way of giving something back to their communities. Besides, they need to understand that they have to make time for all of this and that it does not become a distraction to their athletic performance.

For athletes, therefore, it’s extremely important to educate themselves before signing anything. They will need to sit down and find someone to help them with this, to make sure they understand the language in the contracts.

3) Know the regulations of the state that you are in.

Some states have strict regulations for student-athletes and agents that require that agents provide an athlete agent disclosure form to any student athlete that they talk to and to provide a copy of any agreement that they sign with the student athlete’s athletic administration within 3 days of signing. It’s best practice to always ask for a copy of the disclosure form or any signed agreement to the school’s athletic director in order to protect your student-athlete eligibility status.

Several states have their own NIL laws, so any potential agreements will have to comply with the relevant states’ laws and NCAA rules. Especially in states like Alabama, this becomes important, as they impose criminal liability for violations of the NIL laws. College athletes may promote specific products according to varying state laws. In Texas, endorsing alcohol, tobacco, steroids, e-cigarettes, and other products is prohibited.

Furthermore, the changes to transfer rules make it even more challenging for college athletes. Is an athlete allowed to carry a contract from one school to another, in a different state? Some state NIL laws say they are not. Once again, the athlete has to make sure they understand all the necessary regulations.

What is not changing?

Football programs nor any collegiate program cannot offer payments to athletes for choosing them over others. The universities don’t allow athletes to use their logos in advertisements without written permission. Schools will make decisions about whether an athlete can sign a deal that competes with an already existing university deal. Will a college allow a hockey player to sign a deal with Nike, while the team is sponsored by Adidas?

Are things ready to roll with the new rules?

No, because there are still many issues that need to be solved. Now that college athletes start earning, it will create an influx of middlemen who want a cut. It’s important that athletes get advice from an agent or lawyer to find the right and fair endorsement deals.

Name, Image, Likeness

Current and future athletes no longer need to choose between an athletic career and making money. Thanks to the new NIL rules, athletes are getting paid for commercials, for posting to social media, and much more. Besides making money, athletes can also use NIL as a means to help social movements. However, it’s important to be aware of the rules and guidelines of the state you are in. Finding yourself a reliable agent that helps you set up deals, may be the best thing to do.