There’s a lot of focus on NIL and the deals that are reported. However, the bigger impact of NIL may be the deals that never come to fruition.
As NIL begins to proliferate youth sports, it’ll likely be the parents that drive this by building athlete brands on social media.
One example in youth football is “Baby Gronk”. You’ll notice the path on his Instagram profile:
- Run by Parent
- Developed Content (more than 1,200 posts and counting)
- 590K Followers
- Sponsored Posts
- Media Coverage
The Athletic covered “Baby Gronk” under the header “Who is ‘Baby Gronk’? The father of the social media sensation shares his plan.“
These parents’ efforts may be well-intentioned. However, not all can be expected to be successful, and for many the mere effort could be counterproductive.
After chatting with coaches at this week’s Pop Warner Super Bowl, there are a few topics to note:
- Demands of success: Studies show kids are already burning out on youth sports by age 12 for many reasons, including “the car ride home”… now some will have content development layered in.
- Shift in focus: One coach I talked to said kids are now “more focused on looking good on TikTok than playing good on the field.”
- Content by all means: From parents vying for sideline space to pressing for playing time to extending athlete activity before/after practice.
- Impact on team: These nascent social media stars will likely first influence their teammates, potentially distracting the athletes’ development and team cohesion.
While coaches have experienced the above in varying degrees, there is a sense that this is the slope we’re on.