Trending in today’s society, sports are becoming competitive among all athletes. But what will trend in the near future are the opportunities for young sport-users to take part in the financial and business fields. In Sept. 2019, the state of California approved a bill that will allow athletes at any young age to profit off their name, image, and representation. This will ensure that young athletes who have mastered skill and talent will have a chance to be noticed as rising stars in the future.  

In the following month, NCAA’s board of governors voted unanimously to update regulations and policies to allow students to benefit from this opportunity. Once the new rules are set in place, students would be able to generate profit. Currently, student-athletes who are still ineligible due to their age are prohibited from certain pursuits. However, in order for young sport-users to benefit revenue at this point, social media is the simplest way to start gaining profit.

It is never too late to become an entrepreneur. Students believe that sports can only be great for a hobby or an experience, but little do they know that establishing viral content can be the first stage of professionally earning money. You will always need to consider audiences or viewers as support to your content. Moreover, social media is a great, overall aid in supporting your endeavors. 

Another important factor to consider is to know your content. In everyone’s personality, there is always a judgmental aspect of them that no one knows. It’s best to avoid those who are trying to ruin your reputation. Keep everything real, with your fans, content, and yourself. “When student-athletes do find the time to engage on social, Farnsworth says one of the most important things is to be themselves. ‘Bring the things that make you weird,’ he elaborates. ‘The things that make you a real person, not just a performer on the field. People fall in love with story, with character, with dimension,” suggested Tyler Farnsworth, founder, and chief growth officer in August United.

Inappropriate content found online could undesirably ruin sponsorship and marketing opportunities. Athletes must have “an aura of maturity about them in high school and college, which is tough when peers have the freedom to do and post anything,” wrote Kristi Dosh, a guest writer on Entrepreneur.

Avoid using ubiquitous content because over time it gets very repetitive and unattractive. The best way to gain an audience is to partner with marketing companies such as Instagram and YouTube. Although it can be an exceptionally competitive field, you should start with the basics of social media apps such as TikTok, Twitter, or Facebook.

There are many ways to enhance your skills in creating a viral video. Many viewers look for content that is fascinating such as what Viral Nation’s Micheli recommends, “Some athletes have really great sets of skills that they can post videos such as trick shots, or really cool stunts, which would make for very interesting content.”

Student-athletes who are currently in high school will need to wait for the effect to come into play in January 2023. From there, these students would probably receive the biggest benefits. Students who are athletically skilled to create content that involves athletic skills such as shooting a basketball into a hoop without looking or spiking a volleyball with great exertion.

However, Mr. Franz, who is a P.E. and health instructor at AHS, looks upon the truth of the new regulations; he notices that the laws can turn out to be prejudice on certain conditions. He realizes “a huge difference in the amount of fan support between male and female athletes. The current sports landscape in both college and professional ranks do not promote female sports anywhere close to male sports like football and basketball. Male athletes would be the main people to gain from the new law. It would only be a very small group of female athletes gaining profit. In the last year, the only female college athlete [he] can think of would be Katelyn Ohashi, a competitive gymnast at UCLA, that would have been able to take advantage of her prestige. Her floor routine went viral.”

Making a profit at a young age can open a variety of opportunities such as gaining a head start or simply being well known. So no matter your weaknesses, people who have a great passion for what they do can produce a successful, prospering business. Currently, marketers are preparing the newest and best positions for young athletes to thrive in this new forum. So whether you decide to model for a sports company or do the most fascinating things, it is best to start now so that you can become one of the world’s exceptional and youngest entrepreneurs!

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