ONIT Taps The Brandr Group Athletes Portfolio for Collegiate Trading Cards

The Brandr Group has announced the launch of a new partnership with ONIT, a new type of entrant into the trading cards and sports memorabilia space focused on creating high-end trading cards tailored to the NIL marketplace. Over time, ONIT will release sets of team-specific trading cards, featuring large sets of men and women student-athletes from approximately 50 school partners of TBG, starting with various athletic programs at Ohio State, Texas, Auburn, Nebraska, Michigan State and at least 15 other universities.

ONIT seeks to build sets of collegiate trading cards with as close to full participation as possible by inviting entire teams to participate in the voluntary program. This approach allows fans to have access to potentially every player from their favorite teams with each player on each team being compensated. Ohio State, for instance, will have 12 of its teams – six men’s teams and six women’s teams – represented in the upcoming release.

Nebraska volleyball hosted the largest NCAA women’s volleyball event ever held with more than 90,000 attending an open-air match Aug. 30 at Memorial Stadium. The teamwide pack for the Huskers launched to coincide with the event, allowing fans to buy ONIT packs of cards featuring every player on the team.

Related:10 Minutes With … The Brandr Group on Commercial Licensing Opportunities for College Athletes

The launch of these card sets represents an engaged, fair approach to NIL compensation as student-athletes will receive guaranteed NIL revenue through their voluntary participation in the program. Athletes are compensated based on a competitive revenue share per pack, and the program is expected to ultimately impact thousands of male and female student-athletes in the coming year. It is projected to generate more than $2.5 million in revenue for participating student-athletes throughout the course of the college football season alone, in what will become one of the largest NIL group licensing programs.

Last month, License Global spoke with Ryan Moss and Riley Haynes, co-heads, licensing, The Brandr Group, to discuss all things “NIL” and the new ways college athletes are able to license their commercial value.

Select athletes will be afforded the opportunity to insert autographed cards into team packs, allowing them the chance to earn additional revenue for signatures on top of the compensation rate issued to all participating athletes. One in every 10 packs will feature an autographed card. Athletes will also be able to receive additional compensation for selling cards through their social and digital platforms.

“ONIT takes an innovative approach to engaging with and benefiting student-athletes, one that prioritizes the success of the athlete in a fair, competitive way, and that is something we greatly appreciate and respect,” says Wesley Haynes, chief executive officer, The Brandr Group. “Not only are their cards among the best-rated in the industry by professional sports authenticators (PSA), they also utilize a model that relies on a rising tide to lift all boats by creating equitable opportunities for each athlete who decides to participate in the program. We believe this can be a lucrative group NIL program for athletes and one that fans of an individual school plus their favorite team can fully support.”