UK and Fanatics Announce 12-Year Partnership Extension and Groundbreaking NIL program for Wildcat Student-Athletes
LEXINGTON, KY – University of Kentucky Athletics today announced a 12-year partnership extension with Fanatics, which operates the UK Team Shop official online store, anchored by a significant investment dedicated exclusively to Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) opportunities for UK student-athletes. The partnership represents a first-of-its-kind marketing model designed to channel the strength of the UK brand directly into revenue generation avenues for the student-athletes who represent it.
Within the partnership, Fanatics will work with select UK student-athletes on a range of activations through the Fanatics Creator Program, the company’s influencer marketing platform. Through Fanatics Creator, student-athletes can launch affiliate storefronts, curate product collections, and seamlessly link merchandise to their social media posts. In addition, Fanatics will also work with a handful of student-athletes to spotlight new UK merchandise product collections across its e-commerce network and brick-and-mortar retail partners.
“This is an exciting next step in our mission to put student‑athletes first in everything we do,” said Nathan Schwake, Senior Associate Athletics Director for Licensing and Branding at UK Athletics. “We want our athletes to succeed on the field and on the court while giving Big Blue Nation the opportunity to support them by wearing Kentucky-branded gear with pride. This new agreement creates meaningful, real-world opportunities for our student-athletes and strengthens the connection between our teams and our fans.”
The new agreement builds on Fanatics’ existing comprehensive relationship with UK Athletics, which spans several core areas of its merchandising business. Fanatics operates the UK Team Shop and serves as the primary apparel licensee, distributing UK merchandise across major retailers, including Kroger, Walmart, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Academy, and the University of Kentucky Bookstore, among others.
Additionally, Fanatics Collectibles, through its Topps and BowmanU brands, has partnered with UK Athletics to design, produce, and distribute collectible cards featuring current UK student-athletes and notable Wildcat alumni.
By incorporating NIL agreements into this established structure, the partnership creates new opportunities to further align Fanatics and UK Athletics while expanding how Wildcat student-athletes participate in and benefit from the demand for UK merchandise.
“We look forward to aligning with Wildcat student-athletes to promote Kentucky licensed merchandise online and across major retail accounts we service,” said Tommy Gray, SVP of Fanatics College. “Their reach and authenticity, combined with Fanatics’ dynamic platform and expertise throughout the competitive licensed sports merchandise and collectibles landscape, will be a powerful catalyst for growth and connection across Big Blue Nation.
The partnership was developed through BBNIL, the University of Kentucky’s NIL platform operated jointly with JMI Sports, the athletic department’s exclusive multimedia rights holder. Designed to support high-impact opportunities at scale, BBNIL integrates brand partnerships, content development, and compliance to execute long-term programs like this efficiently. All Fanatics NIL campaign content will be developed and managed through BBNIL, ensuring a unified approach to student-athlete activation and storytelling.
“The differentiator in a partnership like this is the structure behind it and its benefit to UK’s student-athletes,” said Kim Shelton, Senior Vice President, NIL Strategy at JMI Sports. “By pairing this long-term investment with a platform built to support it, we are able to create campaign consistency and scale that delivers meaningful opportunities to student-athletes and lasting impact for Fanatics to be embedded in the program for years to come.”
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ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY ATHLETICS
UK Athletics is a leader in college sports, sponsoring 23 varsity sports teams (12 women’s teams, 10 men’s teams, plus the coed rifle team) and hundreds of student-athletes, competing for championships, ensuring their education and well-being, and providing opportunities for the present and future.
Over the course of this year, the UK Athletics Department is shifting to Champions Blue, LLC. The non-profit holding company, a first of its kind in college athletics, is designed to provide the department with the flexibility to unlock new revenue streams through public-private partnerships and potentially other transactions, such as real estate.
ABOUT FANATICS COMMERCE
Fanatics Commerce is a leading designer, manufacturer, and retailer of licensed consumer products, including fan gear, jerseys, lifestyle and streetwear products, headwear, and hardgoods. It operates a vertically-integrated platform of digital and physical capabilities for leading sports leagues, teams, colleges, and associations globally – as well as its flagship site, www.fanatics.com.
ABOUT JMI SPORTS
JMI Sports is a leading media rights and venue development company that provides management of collegiate multimedia rights, sponsorship sales agency representation, and project management expertise for the development of collegiate and professional sports facilities. The company serves to maximize each client’s economic potential through customized initiatives, from marketing and branding solutions to facility design strategies.
JMI Sports’ signature collegiate multimedia rights partnerships include the University of Kentucky, the University of Utah, UCLA, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, Harvard University, DePaul University, Columbia University, San Diego State University, University of California at San Diego, University of San Diego, and joint-venture properties at the University of Georgia (with Learfield) and University of Notre Dame (with Legends). JMI Sports also represents multimedia rights for several conferences, including the Ivy League, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Patriot League, and the Atlantic 10, and serves as third-party sales representation for premier sports properties, venues, and events including Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center, the Rose Bowl, the Penn Relays, and USA Volleyball.
JMI Sports was founded in 2006 by CEO Erik Judson and technology entrepreneur John Moores, former owner of the San Diego Padres. To learn more, please visit www.jmisports.com.
