Opendorse “NIL at 3” Report
Who Opendorse is and why their data matters
Opendorse is a leading NIL marketplace and technology company that powers deals and compliance for athletes, brands, schools, and collectives across college sports. They sit at the center of the NIL economy, processing and tracking large volumes of real transactions across divisions and sports, which gives them unusually strong visibility into how money actually moves.
In this year’s report, Opendorse draws on 150,000+ anonymized transactions from 100,000–125,000+ athletes to model market size, deal types, and sport-by-sport trends.
Why this report is worth counselors’ time
“NIL at 3” is concise and granular. It breaks down projected market size, where dollars originate (collectives vs. commercial sponsors), activity types (appearances, social posts, autographs, shout-outs), expected annual earnings for top athletes by sport, and collective budgets by subdivision. It also previews how revenue sharing could reshape the mix. For anyone advising students and families, it is a clear, data-rich snapshot of the current NIL landscape.
A few high-level findings to note
Market size and growth: Opendorse projects the NIL market at $1.67B for 2024–25, up about 43% year over year, with potential to exceed $2.5B in the first revenue-sharing year. Growth is driven by both collective spend and a jump in commercial activity, helped by EA Sports College Football 25.
Where dollars come from: Collectives still account for the vast majority of NIL compensation, roughly 4:1 collective-to-commercial spend, and ~82% of total NIL payments.
Sport-by-sport dynamics: Football and men’s basketball dominate collective dollars. On the commercial side, women’s basketball ranks ahead of men’s basketball for total compensation share in 2024.
Expected earnings at the top end: For Division I “Top 25” athletes by sport, Opendorse estimates about $349K in men’s basketball, $294K in football, $88,975 in women’s basketball, $47,710 in baseball, $8,545 in softball, and $5,868 in women’s volleyball. These figures illustrate how sharply earnings drop outside football and men’s basketball.
Collective budgets and results: Projected 2024–25 collective budgets cluster around $13.9M for Power Four, $3.4M for Group of Five, and $1.2M for other Division I programs, with top-spending collectives more likely to finish among the nation’s most successful athletic departments. Opendorse
Bottom line and next step
If counselors want a quick, credible pulse on where NIL stands today, “NIL at 3” is a strong, data-driven resource. It helps set realistic expectations, distinguish commercial sponsorships from collective activity, and understand how looming revenue sharing may affect different sports and levels. Read the full report here to dig into the charts and sport-specific details.
