• Star American student athletes could be earning money comparable to their professional counterparts
• In August 2022, the Big Ten conference finalized a media rights deal with Fox, CBS, and NBC worth over a billion dollars each year
• Student athletes have historically been prohibited from generating money from their work on the field

The days of considering ‘college sport’ to be amateur are long gone, according to GlobalData, following the news that legislative changes in the US mean that student athletes can now benefit from the commercial mechanisms and linkages formed by their university. The leading data and analytics company cites the example of the Big Ten Conference, which announced a $7.5 billion media rights deal on the back of student athletes—who would historically not have been paid, the money instead going to their universities.

NIL deals allow companies to market products through student athletes

According to GlobalData’s Sport research, the money received by universities for student players can rival those of professional sports leagues. However, US student athletes were prohibited from receiving payment for their work until June 2021, following the US Supreme Court case NCAA vs. Alston—which found that capping student athlete academic benefits violated competition law. Subsequently, ‘name, images, and likeness’ (NIL) deals were permitted and are becoming a popular way for companies to market their products, through partnering with an athlete.

Will Tyson, Associate Analyst in the Thematic Intelligence team at GlobalData, comments: “Deals with student athletes is a rapidly evolving space, with new agreements being announced daily. On October 10, 2022, Nike signed LeBron James’ son, Bronny, a high school student, to a sponsorship deal. NIL deals provide a way for businesses to be extra creative with their campaigns. It is a new space, so the advertising arena is malleable. Further, college athletes tend to have a loyal social media fanbase due to their age demographic, so it is possible for a creative campaign to go viral.

“Many student athletes could become millionaires before being considered a ‘professional’. This may become an issue for pro leagues in terms of recruitment in future years.”

US college sport sponsorship is commercially agile

Fox, CBS, and NBC agreed in August 2022 on a seven-year media rights deal worth $7.5 billion with the Big Ten, a conference within US college sports. Annually, this is more than what DAZN pays to show Serie A football within Italy. The average attendance at a Southeastern Conference college football match is more than double the figure for a Serie A game.

Tyson continues: “This turnout is partially attributed to the athletes who have a national profile before even making their debut in a professional league. The athletes are the product, yet they were not being paid. GlobalData’s Sport Deals database shows that universities and their athletic conferences, such as professional sports leagues, are commercially agile. Recent sponsors range from cryptocurrency trading sites to airlines.

Student athlete sponsorship is a creative method of advertising for businesses

Industry leaders like Adidas, Amazon, Bose, and Kroger have all signed athletes to sponsorship deals. As sponsoring these athletes has only been possible for over a year, the market is not yet saturated, meaning there are lots of avenues for enterprises to explore.

Tyson adds: “Businesses are being more creative in their partnerships with young athletes, for example Reese’s, which is owned by The Hershey Company, has partnered with 12 college football players with the last name ‘Reese’ to create the Reese’s University lineup.”