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CELSIUS Signs NIL Deals With Players From Every NCAA Tournament Team

The popular energy drink brand has partnered with one player from each men’s and women’s tournament teams.

Michael Ehrlich

Feb 19, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans forward Kiki Iriafen (44) enters the court against the Michigan State Spartans at the Galen Center.
Feb 19, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans forward Kiki Iriafen (44) enters the court against the Michigan State Spartans at the Galen Center. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The matchups are set for the men's and women's NCAA Tournaments, and energy drink powerhouse CELSIUS has revealed the brand's full bracket of new athlete partners.

The NIL mainstay has signed one player from each men’s and women’s tournament teams, compiling a major footprint ahead of March Madness.

CELSIUS' updated athlete roster of 136 college basketball players - to support a new campaign appropriately called “Energizing The Madness" - includes major names such as Walter Clayton Jr. of Florida, RJ Davis of North Carolina, Aneesah Morrow of LSU, Kam Jones of Marquette, Kiki Iriafen of USC, PJ Haggerty of Memphis and Olivia Miles of Notre Dame.

This massive athlete roster update is CELSIUS’ largest NIL initiative to date, following the success of their past college football activations that included working with Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter of Colorado, Dillon Gabriel of Oregon, Jalen Milroe of Alabama and Emeka Egbuka of Ohio State, among others.

“CELSIUS’ ‘Energizing the Madness’ campaign embodies the energy and chaos that makes this tournament so special and is a true illustration of the CELSIUS LIVE FIT lifestyle that sits at the core of our mission to inspire our consumers and partners in everything they do," shared Kyle Watson, CELSIUS’ Chief Marketing Officer. "Our 136 athletes represent a diverse range of talent on both the men’s and women’s side, showcasing our steadfast commitment to the collegiate audience and goal of supporting athletes at pivotal career moments.” 

Prior to last year's NCAA Tournament, the brand jumped into college basketball for the first time by signing a superstar roster that included JuJu Watkins of USC, Jared McCain of Duke, Cody Williams of Colorado and Kwame Evans of Oregon.

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Michael Ehrlich
MICHAEL EHRLICH

Michael Ehrlich is a seasoned sports marketing executive with experience across the global sports brand, athlete representation, media and education sides of the business. The Founder and CEO of Playbook Marketing, Ehrlich consults with brands on all things NIL and athlete partnerships, advises student-athletes on their personal brand building endeavors and is an adjunct professor at his alma mater, the University of Southern California where he teaches a course on athlete communications and marketing. As a writer, his previous bylines include Boardroom, Business of College Sports, DIME Magazine and UPROXX, among others. You can follow him across social media at @MichaelEhrlich and reach out via michael@playbook-marketing.com

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