The NCAA’s recent adoption of a name, image, and likeness (NIL) policy allows student-athletes to earn revenue through endorsement deals. It’s legislation that will help Black athletes in particular.
These new financial opportunities increase the need for providing financial literacy to student-athletes and their families. The education would empower student-athletes to develop a stronger business acumen at a younger age, enabling them to more effectively navigate the complex world of sports sponsorships.
And ultimately empowering them to positively impact their friends, family, and community.
College football drives the most revenue for schools, but NFL eligibility requirements restrict movement to the next level.
To be eligible for the NFL draft, “players must have been out of high school for at least three years and must have used up their college eligibility before the start of the next college football season. Underclassmen and players who have graduated before using all their college eligibility may request the league’s approval to enter the draft early.”
Before the introduction of NIL laws, revenue-driving college football players weren’t compensated for their labor.
But now, all athletes should receive financial literacy education to navigate NIL opportunities and (potentially) negotiate professional contracts. Most athletes will initially still hire agents, but some will not and the impact from that could be tremendously liberating for Black athletes and Black people.
Lamar Jackson is next in line for one of the biggest contracts in NFL history, probably somewhere between Patrick Mahomes’ $45 million per season and Dak Prescott’s $40 million per season.
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