Free resource · NIL education hub

The NIL playbook,
in plain English.

Everything student-athletes need to understand, navigate, and maximize their NIL rights. State-by-state rules, tax basics, FTC requirements, agent vetting, and a glossary.

NIL Basics State Guide Tax & 1099 FTC Disclosures Wellness Protect Yourself Agent Outreach Legal Review Platform Security FAQ Glossary

01 · NIL Basics

What's allowed. What isn't.

The four-quadrant rundown of your rights, your limits, who qualifies, and what you owe — before you sign anything.

✓Allowed

What's allowed.

The rules aren't national.

State NIL laws diverge on approval thresholds and reporting timelines. When in doubt, follow NCAA interim policy and consult your compliance office.

StateNotesPre-approval

Alabama

No school pre-approval. Report deals ≥$600 to NIL Go within 5 days.Not required

California

SB 206 led NIL reform. School approval not required. Strong athlete protections.Not required

Colorado

Open NIL law. Deals ≥$600 reported to NIL Go (Deloitte) within 5 business days.Not required

Florida

No prior school approval required. Athletes keep 100% of NIL earnings.Not required

Georgia

NIL permitted for all eligible student-athletes regardless of division.Not required

Michigan

Board of Regents permits NIL. School financial advisors available.Not required

Ohio

Ohio law allows NIL. Schools may offer resources but cannot block deals.Not required

Pennsylvania

NIL permitted. Athletes encouraged to notify compliance office proactively.Not required

Texas

2021 NIL law. No prior approval required. Report deals through NIL Go.Not required

North Carolina

NIL permitted. ACC schools offer compliance support.Not required

All Other States

NCAA's interim policy applies nationally. Follow your school's NIL policy and consult your compliance office.Not required

Source: state NIL legislation and NCAA interim policy. Laws update frequently — confirm with your compliance office.

03 · Tax & 1099

NIL is self-employment income.

The IRS treats it that way. Federal income tax plus 15.3% self-employment tax. Plan for it from your first deal.

01

The 1099-NEC

Any company that pays you $600 or more in a calendar year must send you a Form 1099-NEC by January 31 of the following year. You owe taxes on this income even if you don't receive a 1099 (for amounts under $600).

02

What you'll owe

Federal income tax (10–37% depending on total income) plus self-employment tax of 15.3% on net earnings. Many athletes are surprised by self-employment tax — budget for it. AthleteForge provides quarterly estimates.

03

Quarterly tax payments

If you expect to owe $1,000+ in taxes for the year, the IRS requires quarterly estimated payments: April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15. Missing these triggers a penalty.

04

Deductions you can take

As a self-employed athlete, you can deduct business expenses: equipment used for sponsored content (cameras, lighting), internet if used for content creation, home office (if dedicated), professional services (accountant, agent fees). Keep receipts.

04 · FTC Disclosures

If you're paid, you must disclose.

Material connections to a brand — paid, gifted, or affiliated — must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously. Violations can run up to $51,744 per post.

The golden rule

Disclose before any “read more” truncation — not buried in hashtags, not in comments.

Instagram & TikTok

Add #ad or #sponsored at the START of your caption
Use Instagram's built-in 'Paid Partnership' label
For Stories: text overlay must be clearly visible, not blended in
Applies to Reels, Lives, and feed posts equally

YouTube

Say it verbally in the first 30 seconds
Check 'Includes paid promotion' in video settings
Add disclosure text above the fold in description
Applies to Shorts too

Twitter / X

Use #ad or #sponsored at the start of the tweet
Cannot use vague language like 'partner' or 'collab'
Applies to quote tweets and threads

Podcasts & Audio

State sponsorship at the beginning of the episode
Cannot disclose only at the end
Must identify the specific brand by name

Use AthleteForge's disclosure template generator →

05 · Wellness

You're a student and athlete first.

NIL opportunities are exciting — they can also create real pressure. Your mental health matters more than any deal.

“It became really stressful… There was a point where I wasn’t talking to my mom… Why am I doing all this stuff?”

— Bijan Robinson, former Texas RB

Recognize the signs.

Feeling overwhelmed by deal obligations on top of school and sport
Avoiding family or friends because of NIL stress
Difficulty sleeping due to deadlines or financial pressure
Questioning your identity beyond being a 'brand'
Saying yes to everything because you're afraid to miss out

Set healthy boundaries.

It's okay to say no — even to great-looking offers
Set a maximum number of active deals you'll carry at once
Block out 'no NIL' hours for family, friends, and rest
Let your agent or a trusted adult handle negotiations
Your athletic career has a longer arc than any one deal

If you need help right now

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

Call or text 988

Free, confidential, 24/7 support for anyone in distress

Crisis Text Line

Text HOME to 741741

Free, 24/7 crisis counseling via text message

NCAA Mental Health Helpline

1-866-331-8615

Free, confidential support for student-athletes

Your campus counseling center

Every NCAA school has free counseling for student-athletes. Contact your athletic department or student health services to schedule. No judgment. Fully confidential.

NAMI National Alliance

Free support groups, education, and a helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264). Trained to understand the unique pressures athletes face.

Athlete-specific networks

Hidden Opponent, Athletes Connected, and Morgan's Message Foundation provide peer support specifically for student-athlete mental health.

Talk to someone you trust

A parent, coach, teammate, advisor, or compliance officer. AthleteForge's Trusted Advisor feature lets you share your deal dashboard with someone you trust.

06 · Protect Yourself

Scammers target newly visible athletes.

If a brand asks you to pay upfront, it's a scam. Period. Here's how to spot the rest of them.

“It was a really scary situation.”

— Savannah Schoenherr, Florida Gymnastics — after nearly losing $1,500 in a fake modeling scam

✕Common scam types

Walk away from these.

Fake modeling or talent agency offers via DM or email
Brands that ask YOU to pay upfront (fees, 'registration', equipment)
Offers with unrealistically high pay for minimal work
Requests to move communication off-platform immediately
Fake 'managers' who claim to represent real companies
'Advance fee' schemes — pay now, get paid more later

✓How to protect yourself

Trust these instincts.

Never send money to a brand — legitimate deals pay YOU
Verify the brand on AthleteForge (look for the verified badge)
Google the company name + 'scam' before responding
Ask your compliance office or agent before signing anything unusual
Keep all deal communication on-platform where it's logged
If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is

If you think you've been targeted

01Stop all communication with the suspected scammer immediately

02Report the brand on AthleteForge using the flag button on their profile

03Screenshot all messages, emails, and any payment requests as evidence

04Notify your school's compliance office — they can alert other athletes

05If you sent money, contact your bank immediately to dispute the charge

06File a report with the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov

07 · Agent Outreach

The right agent is a force multiplier.

The wrong one costs you 20–30% per deal and can torch your eligibility. Here's how to vet, approach, and protect yourself.

✕Red flags

Walk away.

Asks for money upfront before you've earned anything
Can't show verifiable past clients or deal amounts
Pressures you to sign quickly or 'before the offer expires'
Not registered with your state's athlete-agent regulator
Promises specific dollar amounts before knowing your metrics

✓Green flags

Trust these.

Registered with your state athlete agent regulatory body
Transparent flat-fee or capped % (10–15% is market rate)
Willing to do a trial deal before a long-term agreement
Proactively coordinates with your school compliance office
References from athletes in your sport or at your school

Non-negotiables in any agent agreement

01Full disclosure — agent must tell you about every deal, even passes

02Revocation clause — exit with 30 days notice, no penalty

03Fee cap — never agree to more than 15% for NIL representation

04No exclusivity on self-sourced deals — you find it, you keep 100%

05Compliance coordination — agent loops in your compliance office first

Copy-paste outreach template

Subject: NIL Representation Inquiry — [Your Name], [Sport], [School]

Hi [Agent Name],

I'm [Name], a [Year] [Sport] athlete at [School]. I have [X] followers
across [platforms] and have completed [N] deals totaling $[amount].

I'm exploring representation as I scale my NIL activity. I'd love a
20-minute call to learn more about your approach and whether we'd be
a good fit. No pressure — I'm being thoughtful about this decision.

[Your Name] | [Your AthleteForge profile link]

08 · Legal Review

When to use your own attorney.

AthleteForge's template contracts are reviewed quarterly by our NIL counsel. Some deals still need your own lawyer — here's the line.

01 / 04

Platform contracts

Template contracts are pre-approved by our attorneys and updated after every NCAA rule change. Deals under $500 use standard templates automatically.

02 / 04

Custom deal terms

Deals that deviate from templates are flagged for 48-hour attorney review before you sign. You'll never be rushed.

03 / 04

Get your own lawyer when…

Any deal over $5,000 · Equity or revenue-share terms · Exclusivity clauses over 6 months · Anything assigning your likeness in perpetuity.

04 / 04

Your rights, always

You are never required to sign on a deadline. All executed contracts live in your AthleteForge vault forever. Attorney review is included in platform cost — no extra charge.

09 · Platform Security

What protects you on every interaction.

Six platform-level safeguards — and a personal NIL hygiene checklist — built into every deal you sign through AthleteForge.

01 / 06

Rate limiting

All APIs rate-limited (5 req/IP/hr on sensitive endpoints) to block spam and abuse.

02 / 06

Input sanitization

Every user-submitted field is stripped, escaped, and validated before storage.

03 / 06

Brand verification

Brands submit EIN, LinkedIn, and website for manual review before reaching athletes.

04 / 06

Stripe escrow

All payments via Stripe Connect. Funds held until deliverables are confirmed.

05 / 06

FTC logging

Every disclosure acknowledgment is timestamped for your legal protection.

06 / 06

CSP headers

Content Security Policy prevents injection attacks on every page served.

Periodic security checklist (your own NIL practice)

Rotate your social media passwords every 90 days

Review which apps have access to your Instagram / TikTok accounts

Never share login credentials with an agent or brand

Verify brand payment arrives before posting content

Screenshot and save every executed contract

Report any suspicious brand contact via AthleteForge's report feature

10 · FAQ

Plain-English answers.

The nine questions athletes ask first. Tap to expand.

11 · Glossary

The vocabulary, defined.

Twelve terms that show up in every NIL contract, conversation, and compliance memo.

NIL

Name, Image, and Likeness — the right to profit from your own identity.

1099-NEC

IRS tax form for non-employee compensation. Any company that pays you $600+ must send you one.

Collective

A booster-funded entity that coordinates NIL deals for athletes at a specific school.

CSC / NIL Go

College Sports Commission — administers NIL Go, the national deal disclosure platform.

FTC Disclosure

Required #ad or #sponsored tag on all sponsored content per FTC Endorsement Guides.

Pay-for-Play

Compensation tied to athletic performance — still prohibited. NIL must have a non-athletic deliverable.

Deliverable

The specific content or service you provide in exchange for NIL compensation (a post, video, appearance, etc.).

Market Rate

The fair market value for your NIL based on reach, engagement, and sport. Deals significantly above market rate may be scrutinized as pay-for-play.

Likeness

Your image, voice, signature, or any recognizable attribute that brands can use in marketing.

Exclusivity

A contract clause preventing you from working with competing brands. Read before signing — some last years.

Morals Clause

A contract clause that lets brands terminate if your public behavior reflects badly on them. Common in NIL deals.

Endorsement

A paid promotion where you vouch for a product or service, triggering FTC disclosure requirements.

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The NIL playbook,in plain English.