When Pringles goes looking for mustachioed basketball players to feature on its cans during March Madness, or Spanx wants to connect with female college athletes to promote shapewear, the companies turn to Opendorse, the online platform that helps forge name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals. Since the NCAA started allowing athletes to sign sponsorships in 2021, some 90,000 college athletes have made money using Opendorse, according to the company. Co-founder and CEO Blake Lawrence expects college athletes to earn more than $100 million on the platform by the end of 2023. “Opendorse is growing faster than we ever expected,” he says. “And NIL is just in its infancy.”
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