Name, Image, Likeness – Friend or Foe?

The Supreme Court decision in the NCAA v. Alston et al. case ushered in a new era for college athletes.  As of June 24, 2021, the NCAA was required to approve all college student-athletes eligible to be compensated for their athletic talents, as has been the case for professional athletes for decades.  “Name, Image, Likeness,” or NIL as commonly known, provides athletes the right to sell their NIL without losing their academic eligibility.

Benefits and Options

Financial

College sports and universities bring in billions of dollars per year on sports.  NIL has balanced benefits to those athletes that make fundraising possible through visibility, achieving excellence in sports, winning, and elevating the university’s reputation and recruiting potential.  There are multiple benefits to student-athletes who participate in or are recruited for their NIL.

• Fairness to the student-athlete who is essentially making large sums of money for their respective school and sport.  A powerful new example is Ouro, a company with an NIL model to provide all athletes with financial compensation and opportunities in exchange for athletes receiving financial literacy and online education from Ouro.  The University of Texas and Ouro have partnered in this NIL initiative.
• Financial safety and ability to pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees without the worry of long-term post-college student debt.
• Staying in college or in the portal for an additional year(s) to increase desirability and readiness for pro-sports.
• Ability to assist family when needed, either to relieve them of college costs burden or to provide them with more than they currently have or could achieve (often homes, property, otherwise unattainable luxuries).
• Personal financial stability above and beyond student costs – no financial worries.
• High visibility provides potential early lucrative job and career opportunities, which may include an early entry into the workforce or the professional sports realm.
• Getting an agent or other guidance person to assist in achieving the best ‘package’ in recruitment.

Relational

An athlete becoming sought after for his/her NIL can have significant positive impacts on those in their personal and athletic world.

On a personal level, NIL provides validation for an athete’s talent, builds confidence and may enhance their drive for successful sports performance and the ability to learn from mistakes by transforming those experiences into a motivating learning opportunity.

High visibility and compensation for one member of a team can expose other teammates to the same potential opportunities. Coaches, management, and the college or university itself benefit from having athletes who receive such positive publicity.  The management team can utilize the athletes’ fame and talent to enhance their own recruiting, and the university gets a boost to its reputation, which can assist in fundraising – including having the athlete attend high-profile development activities on behalf of the Institution.

Young, talented athletes can become celebrities, giving them access to people in positions of influence (like recruiters for TV, films, and unique job opportunities) that may help them pursue their dreams – during their sports career and beyond.  Many sports celebrities have gone on to create philanthropic organizations that raise money for important causes and establish programs for children and young athletes to have the same opportunities they have been afforded.  Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers donated $1000 per passing touchdown in 2022, totaling $34,000 to the Mississippi Make-A-Wish Foundation.  Athletes can become role models for other team members, fans, and children who share their athletic aspirations.  They have a platform to pass on the qualities and values that have made them honorable athletes and adults, such as those embodied by the PHOENIX who rise over adversity:

• P – Perseverance
• H – Hope
• O – Overcoming
• E – Endurance
• N – Never giving up
• I – Inspiration
• X – eXample

In personal relationships – as a son/daughter, with a spouse or significant partner, or with friends – NIL may bring them closer due to a shared recognition of the athlete’s talent and gifts, and by the role these family members and friends may play in supporting, protecting and providing safe haven to the athlete.  Family members have been known to protect their son or daughter athlete during NIL negotiations, famously depicted in the film “Air” about Michael Jordan’s recruitment by Nike and how his mother successfully managed those tough negotiations on his behalf.

Challenges and Complications

Financial

When a college athlete is recruited for their name, image, or likeness to be used in marketing and promotions that increase visibility, attractiveness, and the value/quality of a product or service (e.g. “if [my favorite athlete] likes, uses or believes in this product, I should too…”).  In addition, there are potential financial influences that can come into play.

High school and collegiate athletes who get recruited for NIL are often ill-prepared to handle the sudden thrust into the world of ‘big money and fame.’  The money can be so lucrative and large that athletes and their families have never seen such enormity.  The athlete may not yet be managing their own finances – parents may be.  They may not have been taught budgeting, money management, savings, credit card use, and other personal financial strategies.  If that is the case, someone else will have to assist them – family, a recruiter/manager, an attorney, and/or a financial planner. Without that, money may be spent lavishly and foolishly, or they may be targets for those who are intent on exploiting their newfound gains.

Similar to the quandary faced by many who have won a state or national lottery, NIL money can be seductive, alter one’s perception of themselves or others, and lead to ‘friends and relatives I never knew I had.’  Depending on the athlete’s maturity and business savvy, this can be a disaster waiting to happen.  Family members and relatives may come knocking with hands out.  Scammers and opportunists may play on that ego to draw the athlete into rabbit holes that only benefit them.  One such example is Savannah Schoenherr, an NCAA gymnast who was approached by a business wanting her to model their apparel.  They negotiated a fee for a photo shoot, sent her a $3000 check, and when she tried to deposit it, the check bounced.  She had been scammed.

Money can lead to an overbearing ego and an assumption of superiority not seen in the athlete before. Sometimes, that gravitas leads to poor decision-making (financially and behaviorally), a significant loss of money, and NIL contracts or endorsements.

Male and female athletes and those in traditional vs. non-traditional sports may be offered very different NIL financial agreements or benefits, which is viewed as unfair and biased.  Competition among and between NIL athletes can create discord and dissatisfaction due to this disparity.

Relational

All relationships in an athlete’s life are impacted, directly or indirectly, by NIL.  There are ethical dilemmas, relationship changes, and emotional stresses that can accompany this new world of status, celebrity, and opportunity. The challenges can involve knowing who to trust (including yourself), how to assess someone’s true intentions, and whether or not they have your back.  What comes with the NIL status and the money are emotional entanglements that a young and naïve athlete may not see coming.  Some of the first and most apparent impacts are with the team, coaches, and college staff.  Others may involve those associated with NIL.

Although the opposite can be true, some teammates may be jealous of the athlete with NIL endorsements and change their interactions with them:  ignore, dismiss them, undermine or sabotage their sports performance, or try to tear down the athlete with other teammates or coaches to make themselves look or feel better.

Coaches and university administrators may give special status or privileges to an NIL athlete, but often with strings attached.  Public appearances and promotional activities that impact the university’s ‘bottom line’ may be part of the NIL ‘package,’ whether or not the athlete is comfortable with those terms.  It also adds stress to an already heavy academic, sports practice, and preparation schedule for the athlete.

New relationships are formed:  possibly an agent, representatives of companies from which NIL is awarded, those who are drawn to and want to be in the orbit of a famous person, and new friendships that are formed due to NIL.  Questions may inevitably arise regarding the genuineness of those relationships:   Is it you or your money/fame that draws them to you?  Are they there in your best interest?  How much can they be trusted?

Social media is its own fraught minefield for NIL promotions. Combine that with the normal stresses of transition from high school to college – academic classes, sports practice, and performance, and social interactions, and the young athlete is easily overwhelmed.  Rates of depression among college athletes are increasing and are exacerbated by social media’s immediate, anonymous commentary that is often critical and toxic.  Athletes who are required to have a social media presence can be impacted negatively by this commentary, comparing themselves to others, letting online trolls into their head, and questioning their competence and worthiness.

Personal relationships are directly affected, especially with partners, spouses, and parents.  Fame and money can lure an athlete into worlds never-before experienced – some beneficial but others high-risk and dangerous.  Too many examples exist where athletes are given money, fawned over by handlers and fans alike, introduced to drugs, free and easy lifestyle changes, tempted by those who put them on a pedestal.  All that adulation can inflate an ego.  Marriages are strained by ego, infidelity, trust breaks, and a loss of privacy.  Changes in roles can upend relationships (e.g., king/queen to underlings) and imbalance normal interactions (e.g., when an athlete becomes the financial provider for all those around, including parents)

Suggestions for Creating a Healthy Relationship with NIL

• Identify and nurture your support network:  who your backers and detractors are.  Keep your backers in your ‘inner circle’ where you can hear them, and detractors in the ‘bleachers’ where their voices are drowned out in white noise.
• Know who you are, your values and talents – as an athlete and a person, what your basic values are that help ground you.
• Understand that an athlete’s sport is a reflection of the Person, not a definition of the Person.  Stay part of the team and connected to your teammates – you are one member of the team, not the whole team.
• Surround yourself with trusted friends and loved ones with whom you feel ‘yourself’ when together, ones that will give you a true reflection of who they know you to be, who will keep you grounded if the NIL ego gets too high, and will be there to encourage and hold a safe space for you when the stresses build, and the pressure is high.
• Trust your gut when determining who is on your ‘team’ or not.  Get a second opinion/confirmation from a trusted teammate, friend, parent, or partner.
• Employ a financial adviser, attorney, or manager to assist in negotiating the NIL landscape.  Read the Fine Print!

NIL is a mutually beneficial opportunity to utilize an athlete’s fame in order to grow a business and benefit the associated NIL businesses and the athlete’s college or university.  Prior to that, it was forbidden for athletes to profit from their talent and presence.  If an athlete is well grounded, surrounded by family, friends, teammates and coaches who are supportive and protective, guided by ethical and knowledgeable management, NIL can be a win-win for all.