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Today’s Case

UConn men’s basketball star Adama Sanogo signs NIL deal with Sunoco Racing Fuels

Fresh off a national championship, the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player in this year’s Final Four has signed a deal with Sunoco Racing Fuels, partially as a creative play on his name and the company’s.

Being that Sanogo was born in Mali, he's unable to profit from NIL in the U.S. because of his student visa/international student status. As a workaround, he signed a deal with Sunoco and filmed his first ad in the Bahamas instead.

As part of a signed jersey collab with the brand, fans can enter to win the signed jerseys by liking his post, tagging a friend and following the gas station on Instagram.

The Verdict:

• Nice workaround to execute an NIL deal outside the U.S.

  • Filming in an international country (Bahamas, I presume) is a great (and legal) way to maximize Sanogo’s NIL.

  • Fans in the U.S. can still access the content and sign up to win a signed jersey, so the target audience is being reached.

• The post is well done

  • Video, not image(s)

  • Long enough to tell a story (~20 seconds) and short enough to keep viewers engaged for the entire video

  • CTA (call to action) in the post description

• International student-athletes should absolutely be able to maximize their NIL in the U.S.

  • U.S. Senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal, both from Connecticut, sent a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas during March Madness asking for DHS to provide guidance and updated regulations to allow international athletes to exercise their NIL rights.

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Question of the Day

Would you accept a product-only (no money) NIL deal?

• Yes

• No

• Depends on the offer

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Court is adjourned. Go be great!!