NERF, VaynerSports: NIL Turns Student-Athletes into "Cultural Pacemakers"

NERF capitalizes on student-athletes' influence with launch of new sport

Student-athletes are now among the most coveted influencers in advertising.

The opportunity for college athletes – and now high school athletes in the majority of states – to profit from their name, image, and likeness, has enabled millions of amateur athletes to become paid influencers. Athletes' loyal fan bases and high engagement rates on social media make them a perfect match for paid collaborations with brands. 

"NIL has led to an increase of 'athlete-creators,'" said Jack Adler, Founder and CEO of Out2Win Sports. Adler's company defines the athlete-creator as "a hybrid of athleticism and creativity, reshaping sports marketing by extending influence beyond the field through compelling, authentic social media content." 

Brands like NERF have successfully teamed up with athlete-creators, finding innovative ways to create authentic partnerships between the athlete and brand. 

In September, NERF launched a new sporting event, NERFBALL: BATTLE IN THE BUBBLE tournament. Instead of using pro-athletes and prominent influencers as sponsors, NERF partnered with student-athletes who participated in the sport's first ever competition in Florida. The launch was a success, and NERF plans to hold an annual tournament, partnering with student-athletes again in 2024 to sponsor the event.

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"The purpose of NERFBALL – BATTLE IN THE BUBBLE was to successfully launch NERFBALL as a real sport, and to do that, we needed to work with true athletes," said Teresa Pearson, VP, Global Franchise Strategy & Management, NERF & Sports Action. "These showstoppers brought their athleticism and competitive chops to the field, which allowed us to really showcase the excitement and fun that NERFBALL brings. Not only were we able to activate their powerhouse skills on the field, but we were able to leverage each student-athletes' highly engaging social channels to share NERFBALL content that reach our target audiences. Overall, with NERF being an active play lifestyle brand, working with NIL athletes has been such a natural fit for us, and we plan to continue working with these kinds of superstars to help effectively demonstrate the NERF brand."

NERF has partnered with sports marketing agency VaynerSports in developing and executing its NCAA NIL campaigns.

Student-athletes are "cultural pacemakers," Zach Rubin, EVP, Marketing at VaynerSports, told Sports Illustrated. As more high school and collegiate athletes develop their social media presence, brands will continue to find ways to capitalize on the attention that these athlete-creators generate. 

"Student-athletes and their exploits both on and off the field drive attention," Rubin added. "These individuals have an incredible amount of influence and can help brands drive consideration and conversion quickly and cost-effectively. Future purchase behavior is in many cases formed in college so for brands looking to connect with younger generations, NIL is a great platform."

NIL in college athletics has been in existence for less than three years. In a recent study conducted by Captiv8, student-athletes were found to have outperformed standard influencers by two times on TikTok, 1.2 times on Instagram, and ten times on Twitter. The study consisted of 319 student-athletes, each with 20,000 or more followers. 

Unfolding before our eyes is a social and cultural phenomenon still in its infancy.