Download The Comprehensive Guide To These Eleven University Specific Platforms
Learn about the founders, the company mission, differentiators from similar companies, staff/manpower, involvement and expectation from the athletic department, press releases, and more in this 26-page PDF.
In the first seven months of Name, Image, and Likeness, it has become evident that university and/or team specific platforms are crucial to creating deal opportunities for the 99% of collegiate athletes that won’t have brands seeking them out. Because most universities are prohibited from facilitating deals for their athletes, “collectives” have popped up all over the country. In this article, NIL Network highlights 11 platforms that are helping athletes from specific universities or teams to monetize their NIL.
Disclaimer: Descriptions have been provided by the founders of these businesses. Due to the novel nature of the NIL industry, it’s not yet possible to verify these services. This list is provided for informational purposes only and NIL Network has no monetary affiliation or partnership with any of these companies.
There are three main areas of focus by these businesses:
Individual Athletes and/or Small Groups
Similar to the marketplace or agency model, athletes opt in and brands create their marketing campaigns for individuals, small groups, or teams.
- Positives: Easy to setup, eases friction between local businesses who want to work with athletes of a particular institution.
- Challenges: Not every athlete who opts in is guaranteed opportunities.
A Good Option For: Universities with a low risk tolerance but want to provide easier connections between their athletes and local businesses/fans.
Overview of Individual Athletes and Groups Platforms
Business | Founded | Business Model | Currently Serving Athletes From: | Services Offered |
Jason Belzer August, 2021 | 15% fee on all contribution dollars collected and used in the execution of NIL activations. | University of Florida, Loyola Marymount University, Fordham University, Robert Morris University, Santa Clara University, Creighton | Crowdfunding, Organizing Coaching Opportunities, Facilitating Appearances, NFT Creation, Content Creation for Athletes | |
Nicholas Lord, Stan Golubtsov & Casey Floyd July, 2020 | Flat transaction fee in the platform of 15% off the top of the total deal amount. | Commitments from over 65 universities for the compliance software. NOCAP is launching their collective solution in Q1 | Crowdfunding, Facilitating Appearances, Tax Reporting for Student-Athletes, Legal Support, Compliance Reporting/Disclosures, Content Creation for Athletes | |
Jim Cavale September, 2017 | Additional fee for INFLCR partner schools | Boise State, DePaul University, Michigan State University, St. John’s University (New York), Syracuse University, Texas A&M University, University of Southern Mississippi, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Oklahoma, University of Michigan | Tax reporting for athletes, Legal support, Public relations/crisis management, Personal brand building education, Mobile app, Compliance reporting/disclosures, Content Creation for Athletes |
Team by Team
Opportunities are presented to the team as a whole (athletes still have to opt-in) and each athlete is compensated equally and completes the same quid pro quo.
- Positives: Provides a team bonding activity for teams, Individual athletes can take leadership and set this up on behalf of their team.
- Challenges: Potential for team conflicts to arise if the work isn’t equally shared.
A Good Option For: Teams that want to take the initiative or athletes that want to rally their teammates to participate.
Overview of Team By Team Platforms
Business | Founded | Business Model | Currently Serving Athletes From: | Services Offered |
Patrick Griffin July, 2021 | 80% of revenue goes to participating players split evenly, 10% to Teampaper, and 10% to the Boys and Girls Club. | Football Teams at Alabama, LSU, Florida State, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Cincinnati, Iowa. MBB Teams at Alabama, LSU, Florida State, Ohio State, Houston, Tennessee, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Cincinnati, Iowa, Clemson, Maryland. WBB Teams at LSU, Florida State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Cincinnati, Iowa, Clemson, Maryland. Softball Teams at LSU, Texas, Florida State, Ohio State, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Iowa, Maryland | Fan Subscription Model, NFT Creation, Content Creation for Athletes | |
Luis Pardillo, Andrew Bledsoe, Aaron Marz, D’Eriq King, McKenzie Milton September, 2020 | USO entities are to be revenue neutral, while Dreamfield’s parent company processes our standard fees for contracts. | University of Central Florida and four others not announced yet. | Crowdfunding, Fan Subscription Model, Negotiating Brand Partnerships on Behalf of Individual Athletes, Organizing Coaching Opportunities, Facilitating Appearances, NFT Creation, Tax Reporting for Student-Athletes, Legal Support, Compliance Reporting/Disclosures, Content Creation for Athletes | |
George Pappas July, 2021 | Revenue Share | University of Arizona: Men’s Basketball, Women’s Basketball, Baseball, Softball, Volleyball | Fan Subscription Model, Group Licensing, Mobile App, Compliance Reporting/Disclosures, Content Creation for Athletes | |
Doug Tucker, Ben Hubbard, Josh Goodin June, 2021 | Fee is 7% of funds contributed through the platform. | Alabama Gymnastics, Alabama Track & Field, Mississippi State Softball, Mississippi State Football, LSU Women's Basketball, LSU Gymnastics, SMU Football. | Crowdfunding, Content Creation for Athletes, Reccuring Contributions, Other Crowdfunding campaigns, and local business education. | |
Zachary Segal Dec. 2019 | Brands endorsed by student athletes will pay a fee to Student Player, Student Player does not take fees from contributions made by fans. | Over $10k Contributions: University of Alabama, Ohio State, Penn State, Clemson, Georgia, Utah, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Baylor, LSU. Check out full list here. | Crowdfunding |
All Athletes at an Institution
- Positives: Includes all athletes that want to participate in NIL opportunities, active approach to sourcing NIL opportunities in the local market.
- Challenges: Longer setup process, monitoring quid pro quo could be a challenge.
A Good Option For: Universities who want to ensure all athletes who want to participate in NIL, can.
Overview of All Athletes at an Institution Platforms
Business | Founded | Business Model | Currently Serving Athletes From: | Services Offered |
Jason Bergman October, 2021 | 100% of money raised from fans goes directly to student-athletes. | University of Florida | Crowdfunding, Facilitating Appearances, Personal brand building education, Compliance reporting/disclosures, Content creation for athletes | |
Francisco Aguilar, Rob Sine April, 2020 | Undisclosed | UNLV, Arizona | Crowdfunding, Fan subscription model. Negotiation brand partnerships on behalf of individual athletes, Facilitating appearances, Tax reporting for student-athletes, Mobile app, Compliance reporting/disclosures | |
Chris Aumueller 2017 | Annual fee for institutions/individual teams based on how many athletes are using the product. | FanWord Boost is the latest of three FanWord products. The other two, FanWord Stories and FanWord Coach, are used by 25+ universities, including...• Alabama | All-inclusive NIL Directory (we build a custom school directory that lists all of your athletes' social media channels, the NIL platforms they are on, the products/services they are offering, the camps/clinics they are hosting, the NFTs they are selling, etc.) Other services include NIL education & content creation. |
Download The Comprehensive Guide To These Eleven University Specific Platforms
Learn about the founders, the company mission, differentiators from similar companies, staff/manpower, involvement and expectation from the athletic department, press releases, and more in this 26-page PDF.