With Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) deals becoming part of the norm at the college sports level, the White Sox have taken the first step towards bringing these deals to the professional levels.
This morning, the White Sox announced NIL deals – known as CHISOX Athletes – with eight college athletes with ties to the Chicagoland area:
- Ahamad Bynum (Basketball) – DePaul University | Hometown: Chicago, IL
- Kylie Feuerbach (Basketball) – University of Iowa | Hometown: Sycamore, IL
- A.J. Henning (Football) – University of Michigan | Hometown: Frankfort, IL
- Anaya Peoples (Basketball) – DePaul University | Hometown: Danville, IL
- Terrance Shannon Jr (Basketball) – University of Illinois | Hometown: Chicago, IL
- Temi Thomas-Ailara (Volleyball) – Northwestern University | Hometown: Glenwood, IL
- Cameron William (Basketball) – University of Michigan | Hometown: Chicago, IL
- Kiki Van Zanten (Soccer) – University of Notre Dame | Hometown: Buffalo Grove, IL
The team made it a point to call out that, due to MLB and NCAA rules – they were unable to pursue NIL deals with college baseball or softball athletes.
What are NIL deals? Simply put, they represent the possibility of compensation paid to NCAA student-athletes to promote, partner with, or represent brands. Due to recent historic Supreme Court rulings, these sorts of deals have become more commonplace at the NCAA level – never before had student-athletes been given the ability to profit off of their name, image, and likeness.
Here are some details from the White Sox’s official press release regarding the program:
“CHISOX Athlete connects this new generation of White Sox ambassadors with top-tier branding opportunities by offering financial incentives for social media promotion, access to professional resources within the organization’s front office and personalized career mentorship from leading sports executives.
Through the program, student-athletes will be welcomed to a special pregame experience before enjoying a White Sox game from a private suite alongside friends and family. Each individual also is provided a professional photoshoot at Guaranteed Rate Field or nearby Chicagoland sports venue, as well as a custom White Sox jersey and additional CHISOX Athlete-branded merchandise.
In addition to CHISOX Athlete, the White Sox invite any college student-athletes to enjoy two complimentary upper-level tickets to select games for the remainder of the 2022 season. Student-athletes can submit a current and valid “.edu” email address and a link to their athletic bio to receive their tickets.”
The White Sox appear to be the pioneer in this space professionally. It will be interesting to see how this program develops – and what other teams develop an NIL program – as time goes on.
You can read more about the individual athletes on the White Sox’s official Twitter page.
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