LSU Tigers Guard Hailey Van Lith Highlights Adidas' NIL Strength

For this year's tournament, adidas is working with brand partner Hailey Van Lith to remind elite and everyday athletes to embrace the nature of sport as a game and play free. The commercial will air during both the Men’s and Women’s tournaments across broadcast networks and social channels.

Putting yourself in situations where you’re tested and proving that you can overcome internal or external pressure gives you confidence to play freely and lean into those competitive moments, like championship tournaments, with eagerness rather than fear. It's critical to remind yourself that you’ve navigated pressure before and just focus on being the player and teammate you know you can be.”

One of the keys to playing without pressure is empowering the athlete – on and off the court or field. This desire to empower athletes was at the core of adidas’ initial announcement of the NIL network in March 2022, which gives all student-athletes at adidas-partnered Division 1 schools the chance to benefit from their Name, Image and Likeness. 

Since its inception, over 12,000 student-athletes across a variety of sports have participated in the network, earning a percentage of the sales they drive for key products and campaigns. 

Notably, university programs across basketball, track & field, football, soccer, and baseball have the highest sport representation across the network. Throughout the upcoming tournament, the brand also will be engaging several NIL Network athletes across social channels to showcase their unique styles with adidas product and to share personal stories of how they overcame pressure.

According to the brand, it is seeing tangible results from the network, including millions of social media impressions driven by student-athletes and feedback from participants that the network is helpful in driving entrepreneurial growth. 

Adidas will continue to invest and evolve the network based on insights gathered over the past two years. The brand also plans to visit university schools nationwide to educate student-athletes on growing NIL opportunities.

Building on recent signings, including University of Washington Huskies football teammates Rome Odunze and Michael Penix Jr. and four players from Overtime Elite. More recently, adidas welcomed Texas A&M Aggies Women's Basketball forward Janiah Barker to the Three Stripes family as the brand’s newest NIL athlete. 

In addition to the expansion of its NIL roster, adidas will continue to partner with its university partners and student-athletes to drive long-term equity in sport and create unique, innovative product. Follow FanNation Kicks for all your footwear news from the sports world.