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NIL and Politics

And should student-athletes talk about this publicly?

Presidential elections are coming up soon in the United States.

Some college student-athletes will vote Democrat.

Others Republican.

Another group will vote Independent.

And some will not vote at all.

However, the real question is: Should student-athletes be discussing politics on social media related to NIL?

The Verdict

• Not common - but not ordinary

  • While student-athletes generally don’t comment on politics, University of Montana athletes were proposed an NIL deal: Receive financial compensation in exchange of public support for Democratic state Senator Jon Tester. (Two athletes agreed to the deal.)

  • While we don’t know if this NIL deal is monetarily influenced or truly supporting a candidate, student-athletes should do their research first, as well as discuss with their school’s athletic department.

  • Also, student-athletes should expect some backlash from their followers and brands should they choose to support a candidate.

• Push for voting instead

  • A nice in-between is pushing followers to vote in general, as opposed to supporting a specific candidate.

  • San Jose State football player Nick Nash recently did an NIL deal for exactly that.

• If it’s not your lane, stay out of it

  • As some people say: If it’s not your interest, don’t talk about it publicly.

    • This can be for most topics; however, politics (along with religion) tend to be a more slippery slope than other interests. Again, do your research before entering into any NIL deals focused on politics.

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^{I discuss insights and news related to NIL and personal branding for athletes every Wednesday at 12p ET/9a PT.}

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