Athletes.org

The Super Sixteen Are Ready to Take It to the Next Level! 🏆 Huge shoutout to our talented creators who’ve made it to the FIRST official round of the Athletes.org Creator Tourney! 🎥🚨‼️ These innovators are competing for a $10K cash prize while pushing the conversation forward on college athletics. Let’s give it up for our Super Sixteen! Meet the creators who are changing the game. Stay in the know on the tournament by following along here. #aocreatortourney

California in the Atlantic Coast Conference? Berkeley's a top-tier academic institution, yet their football team traveled more miles this season than the Earth's circumference. Jim Cavale asks: "How can that be good for students?" Cal and Stanford athletes are living pro schedules without pro perks. Joining the ACC means cross-country flights for regular games—65,000+ extra miles yearly (NYC to LA 20 times)! Imagine taking exams at 4AM after red-eyes from Boston or studying through turbulence while crossing time zones. As Jim Cavale points out, these 20-something students spend more time in airports than some executives, constantly battling jet lag while trying to maintain grades. Cal's throwing an extra million at travel costs, but money can't buy back missed classes or normal college experiences.

Tate Frazier set me up perfectly for this one… Meet Jim Cavale, Brandon Copeland, and Athletes.org—the team on a mission to fix college sports. In our last clip, Tate and I talked about Duke vs. UNC as the greatest rivalry in sports. In my opinion, a lot of the best rivalries are in college sports because that’s where you find the most passionate fans. But college sports are at a breaking point... Fans are frustrated. Coaches are pulled away from coaching. Administrators are searching for leadership. And athletes? They don’t have a seat at the table and their development is suffering -- both academically and athletically. A CBA is the solution, and AO is making it happen. Check out the full episode with Tate Frazier and do us a favor and subscribe to the JDS Sports YouTube channel for more! 👇 https://lnkd.in/eYqxxEkw

I was honored to represent the Ole Miss baseball team as our SAAC Representative for 2 years during my time on campus. It was interesting to see the inner workings of the SEC and NCAA offices, but I can personally confirm that we really were not in any position to affect change for athletes. That was 20 years ago, and I’d imagine not much has changed. It’s far beyond time for #collegeathletes to have a real voice in the way the business they create is handled. Athletes.org is primed to be that voice and I am happy to be on their side advocating for the rights of athletes. #collegesports #collegeathletes #NIL #sportslawyer #sportsconsultant #sportsadviser #sportsmanagement #sportsagent ************************************ I’m Justin, but my friends call me JB. I work in sports as an agent, attorney and adviser. My career in professional baseball and experiences in business allow me to craft creative and strategic solutions that benefit my client’s objectives. I’d love to work with you - let’s connect!

CounterTEN x AthleteCon 2.0!! 🚨 For many athletes, NIL opportunities often depend on landing major brand deals. But what if there was a way to monetize directly from fans and create sustainable NIL revenue beyond traditional deals? That’s exactly what we’re bringing to AthleteCon 2.0 this June. CounterTEN’s blockchain-powered Digital NIL Athlete Cards will empower athletes to turn their name, image, and likeness into a direct revenue stream—secure, transparent, and built for the future. 🔥 Unlock Recurring Revenue – Empower creators to offer content subscriptions directly to fans, unlocking instant and sustainable new revenue streams. 🔥 Turn Moments into Assets – Transform content into collectible moments, allowing fans to own snapshots in time while generating revenue from both primary and secondary sales. 🔥 Seamless Digital-to-Real Experiences – Integrate digital perks with real-world benefits, including VIP access, meet-and-greets, and exclusive events. 🔥 Monetize Sponsorships in New Ways – Embed retail promotions into digital cards, creating innovative ways to engage audiences and drive revenue. We’re proud to partner with AthleteCon to help athletes take control of their NIL future—leveraging blockchain technology to create lasting monetization opportunities beyond endorsements. Stay tuned for more details as we get closer to June 5-6 in Charlotte, NC! #AthleteCon #NIL #AthleteMonetization #DigitalCollectibles #SportsTech #Blockchain #FanEngagement Samantha Green

CHICAGO VIBES: ATHLETES TAKING BACK THEIR POWER 🔥 "As an athlete, you have a voice, and sometimes people kind of mute you a little bit... That's exactly why we built Athletes.org - to amplify your voice when it matters most." - Mike Wright, QB Northwestern The Northwestern star QB dropped some real talk about why athletes must stand up and be heard. The energy in the room was unmatched! College athletes across Chicago showed up ready to take control of their narrative in this billion-dollar industry we help create. Ready to be more than just a player in the game? Join AO and become a PARTNER in the business of college athletics. Link in bio! #BeHeard #YourVoiceMatters #JoinTheMovement

Empowering Athletes: It's Time for Change via Sports Business Journal As college sports evolve, athletes are gaining more control over their experiences. However, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), created 35 years ago, no longer meets the needs of today's athletes. According to Sandy Barbour, Amy Huchthausen, and Piper Hampsch, it's time for athletes to demand true representation and a seat at the negotiating table. Current Challenges: SAAC reps are often chosen by coaches or athletic directors, not by the athletes themselves. This limits their influence and effectiveness. For instance, athletes from football and men's basketball are vastly underrepresented in SAAC. Future Opportunities: With new laws and settlements allowing schools to pay athletes, athletes need independent advocacy to ensure fair distribution of revenue and resources. A recent $2.8 billion settlement highlights the need for athletes to have a real voice in negotiations. Call to Action: Let's move beyond SAAC and create a third-party advocacy association that truly represents college athletes' interests. There are already models like the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) that athletes could learn from. Join us at Athletes.org in advocating for the rights and futures of athletes. #AthleteRights #IndependentRepresentation #EmpowerAthletes

Samantha Green has created a huge opportunity for brands to grow through the power of athlete influence. AthleteCon 2025 is set for June 5-6 in Charlotte. The data is clear: companies who use athletes to show off their products and services on social media get higher engagement compared to other avenues. Last year, AthleteCon’s 80+ Division I athletes created 5.2 million impressions in just 10 hours. How’s that for #sharingwins? Pro tip: avoid FOMO and tap into Sam’s expertise to make sure your brand is taking advantage of a big growth opportunity.

Let's be real about what's happening in college sports right now. As Josh Pastner boldly stated: 'It's not even NIL. It's pay to play. Let's call it like it is.' "It will be almost official when the House settlement goes through." The game is changing. We all see through the facade that athletes are being compensated for their athletic performance and not purely for their name, image, and likeness. It's time for transparency in collegiate athletics. #CollegeSports #AthleteRights

Dan Murphy of ESPN wrote the great piece linked below that examines the school “NIL” contracts athletes are being asked to sign in anticipation of House settlement approval. https://lnkd.in/gFz37sag Not only are the agreements extremely one-sided (as examples, they often grant extremely broad NIL rights to schools, contain unfavorable buyout and termination clauses, and attempt to make it hard for athletes to transfer), they reinforce the fact that college athletes are employees under the law. Even without these contracts, which explicitly lay out the many ways that schools are controlling athletes, college athletes already meet the legal test for employment. But these school contracts are only going to make cases like the pending Johnson v NCAA case stronger. And they’ll likely lead to new cases that are very similar to Johnson, where athletes are asking courts to declare them employees. The NCAA and others clearly are aware of this and, instead of working on a model that includes employment, they are still lobbying hard for a federal law that prohibits college athletes from enjoying the protections of employment laws. Beyond what is likely the inevitable ending point of college athlete employment, athletes need to ensure they have experienced and competent representation helping them negotiate these contracts before they sign them. #ncaa #collegeathletes #sportslaw #nameimagelikeness