[jonnyss]

Are the power-5 schools trying to set things up so that the school paying a player $1M for a year's play is an expense like paying the janitor of the administration building?  (It seems clear to me that if Nike directly pays a player for the use of Name, Image, or Likeness, that won't be tax deductible to Nike nor tax free to the player.)  But what about money that is routed through a university?  ("Hey, Texas Tech, we'll 'donate' $$$ to your athletic department, if Canady plays in our pro-am golf tourney") or through a NIL collective?

i would think that nike's payments to a college player for nil are deductible as a legitimate business expense. pretty sure nike deducts the payments to pro athletes/actors in its tv commercials.

[jonnyss]

Are the power-5 schools trying to set things up so that the school paying a player $1M for a year's play is an expense like paying the janitor of the administration building?  (It seems clear to me that if Nike directly pays a player for the use of Name, Image, or Likeness, that won't be tax deductible to Nike nor tax free to the player.)  But what about money that is routed through a university?  ("Hey, Texas Tech, we'll 'donate' $$$ to your athletic department, if Canady plays in our pro-am golf tourney") or through a NIL collective?

i would think that nike's payments to a college player for nil are deductible as a legitimate business expense. pretty sure nike deducts the payments to pro athletes/actors in its tv commercials.