🏅The Business of March Madness

Hey there,

March Madness has always been a spectacle, but in 2025, there’s much more off-court madness than ever before thanks to NIL. It’s playing out in boardrooms, marketing strategy meetings, and the digital feeds of college athletes cashing in on the biggest NIL moment of the year.

The recently released Out2Win March Madness Athlete Marketability Report is giving us insight into exactly how the NIL landscape is changing – data trends, statistics, and more. To be clear, we’re dealing with one of the biggest advertising opportunities in the world here. The NCAA tournament can deliver Super Bowl levels of engagement if properly managed. It’s that big. 

That’s why we thought it would be important to look at the numbers behind March Madness – where the money’s going, who’s benefitting the most, and where brands can expect to see growth. It’s a business-heavy edition of NIL Wire All Access, so let’s put on our suits and get into it.

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— Cole, Justin and Collin

Here are three business takeaways I had from the Athlete Marketability Report.

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