Axios House: NIL changed everything. Now athletes need a new playbook

CANNES, France — A rule change that lets college athletes profit from their name, image and likeness has turned teenagers into small business owners overnight — and the sports industry is only beginning to reckon with what that means, athletes and investors said at an Axios event.

Why it matters: NIL has created a new generation of athletes building businesses before they turn pro, but most are doing it without a roadmap, said Angela Ruggiero, ice hockey Olympian and Genius Sports advisor.

• "Athletes are the best entrepreneurs … they just can't quite see that in themselves initially," she said.

Axios' Kerry Flynn and Eleanor Hawkins moderated discussions with Ruggiero, Buffalo Bills safety and Chasing M's Foundation founder Damar Hamlin, Religion of Sports CEO Ameeth Sankaran, and Ndamukong Suh, Super Bowl champion, investor and "No Free Lunch" host. The June 22 event was sponsored by PayPal.

What they're saying: Hamlin started his clothing brand Chasing M's in high school, built it through three surgeries in college and never stopped. "If you apply the process you apply when you want to be the greatest athlete to whatever it is that you want to do, you will succeed," he said.

• Suh took a different road — interning at Nike mid-career, learning operations from the inside, then building a hands-on investment portfolio in real estate and food.
• "The shield is built off of our backs," Suh said. "Turn around and use that shield to open many doors for you."

Between the lines: Storytelling is what separates athletes who build lasting brands from those who don't, Sankaran said.

• Religion of Sports, which has worked with athletes like Simone Biles, Tom Brady and Steph Curry, best succeeds when it focuses less on what networks want and leans more into what athletes actually have to say, Sankaran added.

Zoom out: Female athletes have the most to gain from this shift, Ruggiero said. They make almost nothing on the field and everything off it.

• Her research found that women's sports fans, both men and women, tended to watch longer, spend more, and demonstrate three times the brand affinity of a typical fan. "They were literally this deep, avid, voracious consumer — the future fan that you want," Ruggiero said. "But they were already there."

What's next: There should be a great focus on leadership, not influence, Hamlin said. "I really feel like there's a shortage on leadership," he said. "I have an obligation to continue to lead and inspire these kids and make sure they're having positive role models."

Content from the sponsor's segment:

In a View from the Top conversation, PayPal chief corporate affairs and communications officer Amy Bonitatibus said the company has struck exclusive deals with the Big Ten and 36-plus colleges and universities to process NIL payments.

• "It's not just about getting the payment … it's about managing their money and building their brand," Bonitatibus said.